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RECOLLECTIONS OF 
THE COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 



RECOLLECTIONS 



OF THE 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES 



BY 



MADAME CARETTE 

LADY OF 50N08 TO THE EMPRESS EUGENIE 
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH BY 

ELIZABETH PHIPPS TRAIN 




NEW YORK 
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 

1890 



■<fc° 
9%p 



COPTKIGHT, 1889, 

By D. APPLETON AND COMPANY. 



By Transfc* 



CONTEXTS. 



I. 

PAGE 

Journey of the Emperor and Empress to Brittany. — Arrival at 
Brest. — Girls offering Flowers to the Empress. — Popular 
fetes. — A Ball. — Her Majesty the Empress Eugenie. — Con- 
tinuation of the Journey. — Notre Dame d'Auray. — Arrival 
at Saint-Servan. — Ball at Saint-Malo. — Attempt of Orsini. 
— Souvenirs of the Journey to Brittany .... 5 

II. 

Ten Years of Reign. — Marriage of Prince Napoleon. — The Italian 
War. — Return of the Army from Italy. — The Princess de 
Metternich. — Prince Richard de Metternich . . .29 

III. 

Journey of the Emperor and Empress to Savoy. — Journey to 
Algeria. — Death of the Duchesse d'Albe. — Return to Saint- 
Cloud. — The Duchesse d'Albe. — Profiles of Sovereigns. — 
The Emperor meets Mile de Montijo. — Sojourn at Coin- 
piegne. — Betrothals. — Departure for Spain. — The Emperor, 
on the 10th of December, announces his Marriage. — Mar- 
riage at Notre Dame. — The Empress's Pearls. — Yilleneuve 
l'Etang. — Visit to Trianon. — A Miniature of Marie Antoi- 
nette. — Feelings of the Emperor toward his Wife. — Grief 
of the Empress after the Death of the Duchesse d'Albe. 
— Journey to Scotland. — Return ..... 45 



2 CONTENTS. 

IV. 

PAGE 

Household of the Empress. — The Princesse d'Essling. — The 
Duchesse de Bassano. — The Marquise de las Marismas. — 
The Comtesse de Montebello. — The Baronne de Pierres.— 
The Marquise de Latour-Maubourg. — The Comtesse Lezay 
Marnesia.— -The Comtesse de Malaret. — Picture by Winter- 
halter. — Madame de Sanay de Parabere. — The Comtesse de 
la Bedoyere. — The Comtesse de la Poeze. — Madame de 
Saulcy. — The Comtesse de Reyne-val. — The Comtesse de 
Lourmel. — The Baronne de Viry-Cohendier. — Madame Fe- 
ray d'Isly. — Pinson, the Ladies' Coachman. —-My Nomina- 
tion to be a Lady of the Palace. — Monscigneur Darboy. — 
Marechal Vaillant. — The Due de Bassano . . . .66 

V. 

How the Empress called me to herself. — My Arrival at the Tui- 
leries. — First going out with the Empress. — The Interior of 
the Tuileries. — Habitual Occupations of the Empress. — The 
infant Prince Imperial. — Bagatelle. — M. Damas Hinard, the 
Empress's Secretary. — M. de Saint-Albin, Librarian. — The 
Comtesse Pons de Wagner, Reader to the Empress. — The 
Private Apartments of the Empress. — The Princesse Anna 
Murat. — The Duchesse de Morny. — The Duchesse de Mala- 
koff. — The Duchesse de Cadore. — The Duchesse de Per- 
signy. — The Comtesse Walewska 98 

VI. 

The Empress's study. — The Papers of the Tuileries. — Private 
Souvenirs. — Portraits and Pictures. — The Comte and Com- 
tesse de Montijo. — The Queen of Holland. — The Prince of 
Orange. — Letters of the Prince Imperial. — The Empress's 
Dressing-room. — An elevator. — Birth of the Prince Impe- 
rial. — The Empress's Oratory.— The Last Mass at the Tuile- 
ries. — Shadows of Female Sovereigns. — The Empress's Bed- 
chamber. — The Golden Rose of the Pope. — " Souvenirs d'un 



CONTENTS. 



Officier d'Ordonnance." — The Empress's Wardrobe. — Politi- 
cal Toilettes. — The Empress's Shoes. — The Orphanage Eu- 
gene-Napoleon. — Fate of the Children after the Commune. 
— Madame Pollet. — The Empress's Jewels. — M. Thelin. — 
The Emperor's Escape from the Fortress of Ham . . 126 

VII. 

Dinner at the Tuileries. — The Salon d'Apollon. — The Service. — 
The Empress's Negro.— The Salon de Louis XIV.— -The 
Empress's Wager. — The Evening's Conversation. — Illness 
of the Prince Imperial, his Humor and his Infant Tastes. 
— Miss Shaw. — Louis Conneau. — M. Bachon. — Madame 
l'Amiral Bruat. — The Comtesse Ducos. — The Prince Im- 
perial's Nurse. — M. Monnier. — Madame Corme. — M. Filon. 
— The Mission Regnier . 179 

VIII. 

Receptions at the Tuileries. — The Dinners. — Grand Balls. — The 
Hundred Guards. — The Presentations. — The Salle de Mare- 
chaux. — Jewels. — Masquerade Balls. — Four Sphinxes. — 
The Marquis de Gallifet. — The Comtesse de Castiglione. — 
Prince Jerome. — Dr. Arnal. — Concerts. — The Empress's 
Private Balls. — The Princess de Beaffremont. — Prince 
Georges Bibesco. — The Princess of Monaco. — The Duchess 
of Hamilton 206 



IX. 

Mexico. — Origin of the War. — Departure of the Fleet. — Admi- 
ral Jurien de la Graviere. — M. Tenaille de Saligny. — Aim 
of the Expedition. — Treaty of the Soledad. — The Negotia- 
tions. — General Prim. — General Lorencez. — Padre Miran- 
da. — The Powers retire. — Conflict of the Powers. — Role of 
Admiral Jurien de la Graviere. — His Return. — The Admi- 
ral is nominated aide-de-camp of the Emperor. — His Part 



CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

in the 4th of September. — Maximilian Emperor of Mex- 
ico. — The Archduchess Carlotta. — Their Journey to Paris. 
->-Basis of Agreement. — Keturn to Miramar. — Departure 
for Mexico. — Arrival at Vera Cruz. — Difficulties. — The Em- 
press Carlotta at Saint-Cloud. — A Glass of Orangeade. — 
Illness of the Empress Carlotta. — The Emperor Maximilian 
in Mexico. — His Trial. — His Death. — End of the Empress 
Carlotta 237 



X. 

The Benevolent Works of the Empress. — Orphanage Eugene 
Napoleon. — Infant Asylums and Schools. — Hospitals, Asy- 
lum for Convalescents. — Maternal Charity. — Orphan Asy- 
lum of the Prince Imperial. — Aid for Wounded Soldiers 
and Sailors. — Society for Life-Saving at Sea. — Fund for the 
Benefit of Invalid Workmen. — Public Kitchens. — The Pris- 
ons. — Visit to Charenton. — Visit to the Petite Roquette. — 
Visit to Saint-Lazare. — Visit to the Hospitals of Paris dur- 
ing the Cholera of 1865 265 



RECOLLECTIONS OF THE COURT 
OF THE TUILERIES. 

I. 

On the 8th. of August, 1858, the Emperor and 
Empress left Cherbourg on board the Bretagne and 
set sail for Brest, escorted by a squadron. The 
Queen of England had come to Cherbourg for the 
purpose of paying a visit to her imperial neighbors, 
and this friendly meeting had been distinguished 
by the most imposing display. 

The French squadron, under the command of 
Admiral Romain Desfosses, was composed of the 
following vessels: The Bretagne, being the flag- 
ship of the fleet, Commander Pothuau ; the Arcole, 
Commander Fabre de la Maurelle ; the Austerlitz, 
Commander Bolle ; the Eylau, Commander Jaures ; 
the Napoleon, Commander Mazeres ; the Alexandre, 
Commander Hugueteau de Chaille ; the Donawerth, 
carrying the flag of the Eear- Admiral Lavaud ; the 
Ulm, Isly, and numerous other smaller vessels. 



6 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

The staff of officers in command had been care- 
fully chosen from among the most brilliant men in 
the service. Most of them occupy to-day high 
grades in the navy; while others, like Lieutenant 
des Yarannes, who became officer of ordnance to 
the Emperor in 1866, have disappeared among the 
shadows of distant warfare, leaving universally re- 
gretted memories and the reputation of brilliant 
and prematurely ended careers. 

The persons who accompanied their Majesties 
formed a most elegant court. Among them were 
the Comtesse de la Bedoyere and the Comtesse de 
Lourmel, widow of General de Lourmel, who fell in 
the Crimea, ladies in waiting to the Empress, two 
names glorious in the records of Brittany ; General" 
Eleury, grand equerry to the Emperor; General 
Mel, aide-de-camp ; Marquis de Chaumont Quitry, 
chamberlain; Baron de Bourgoing, master of the 
horse ; Baron Morio de l'Isle, prefect of the palace ; 
Captain Brady and Marquis de Cadore, who later 
left the navy to enter the diplomatic service, both 
being officers of ordnance; Count de Marnesia, 
chamberlain to the Empress; Baron de Pierres, 
equerry to the Empress ; Doctor Jobert de Lam- 
balle, whose popularity was very great in his own 
country ; M. Mocquart, confidential secretary to the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 7 

Emperor; M. Ilyrvoix, a specially detached officer 
of police whose duty it was to accompany the Em- 
peror everywhere for the purpose of guarding his 
person. Besides these there was a large following 
of lesser persons, ushers, footmen, and servants of 
every kind and denomination. 

The imperial visit to the western provinces, 
which had "been anticipated for months, was an 
event which agitated the entire country. The town 
of Brest, which is situated at the extreme limit of 
Finistere, like a vessel ever ready to embark on the 
ocean which surrounds it, being at a considerable 
distance from the capital, had never been honored 
by a royal visit since the beginning of the sixteenth 
century, when Queen Anne, of Brittany, making a 
pilgrimage to Folgoet, was pleased to visit her good 
town of Brest — then reduced to the proportions of 
a single, strongly-built chateau and a few straggling 
suburbs. The inhabitants were pleased to find a 
poetic analogy between the visit of "the good 
duchesse," whose legendary memory has become 
one of the cultes of the Bretons, and that of the 
young Empress whose advent had been preceded by 
a reputation for grace and benevolence calculated 
to recall the traditional charms of Anne of Brit- 
tany. 



8 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

The day following the departure from Cher- 
bourg, at one o'clock in the afternoon, the squadron, 
having safely passed the narrow entrance to the 
harbor, entered the roadstead of Brest. 

This immense maritime lake, with its wide 
stretches of sandy shore and verdure-clad cliffs, 
formed a setting admirably disposed for the im- 
posing scene which had been prepared for it. The 
huge vessels with their white, swelling sails, headed 
by the Bretagne, advanced in excellently arranged 
order, warmly welcomed by salutes from all the 
cannons of the port and roadstead ; while the eager 
crowd, composed of the entire population in holiday 
attire, hastened to every point of view, and manned 
every elevation with enthusiastic swarms of people, 
shouting vociferous greetings to their sovereigns. 

Soon the vessels came to anchor, acknowledging 
their ardent welcome by a heavy response from 
their own artillery, disappearing, as in an apotheosis, 
in a cloud of fire and smoke from their guns. But 
even before the Bretagne and its imposing escort 
had dropped anchor, a sumptuous craft put off 
from the quay, and, under the strong strokes of 
thirty oarsmen, approached the imperial vessel. It 
was a huge cutter built for Napoleon I. at the time 
of the voyage to Antwerp. This boat is a magnifi- 



COUBT OF TEE TUILERIES. 9 

cently ornamented affair. Two gilded statues of 
Glory and Renown hold above the stern an awning 
of scarlet velvet embroidered with golden bees sur- 
mounted by the imperial crown and an eagle with 
spread wings, while mermaids and tritons with 
trumpets at their lips, grouped in a superb tableau, 
seem to draw over the billows this royally luxurious 
craft, which with its pavilions and floating standards 
reminded one of the triremes of Cleopatra. It was 
in this gorgeous yawl that the Emperor and Em- 
press, followed by a flotilla of meaner boats, were 
conveyed to land. 

Here they were received by M. Bizet, mayor of 
Brest, who, according to custom, presented them 
with the keys of the town. Then the imperial car- 
riage advanced and the cortege moved away to the 
church of Saint Louis, where a " Te Deum " was to 
be chanted. 

The entire town was gayly decorated with flags, 
banners, triumphal arches, and garlands of flowers. 
Draperies floated from every window, from which 
fell a very rain of blossoms, and it was in the midst 
of the wildest enthusiasm that their Majesties re- 
paired to the naval prefecture, where, after a brief 
official reception, they were enabled to gain a little 
repose. 



10 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

I was among the young girls selected to present 
an offering of flowers to the Empress. There had 
been, as usual, much jealousy and rivalry between 
the civic and military authorities regarding the 
preparations, and to satisfy each party it had been 
decided to make two floral presentations to their 
Majesties ; that by the young girls of the town as 
the Emperor and Empress landed, and that by those 
of the marine service at the naval prefecture. 

The Empress rapidly crossed the salon in which 
we awaited her, and paused a few moments to re- 
ceive a bouquet from the hands of a child of about 
six or seven years, the little granddaughter of 
Admiral Laplace, the naval prefect of Brest. The 
poor baby was greatly frightened by the ceremony, 
and tried her best to recover herself and murmur 
in a half-stifled voice one or two phrases of the 
complimentary address which had quite escaped her 
young memory. The Empress stooped and em- 
braced her, and then moved quickly on to the other 
apartments where her presence was being awaited. 

All this passed so rapidly that I scarcely had an 
opportunity to see her. I did not even remark her 
toilet, and only preserved a confused impression 
of her pure brow and charming smile. Above 
everything else I can recall the astonishment that 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 11 

tins brief appearance caused me, for, by reason of 
long anticipation, I had expected that the moment 
would be one of great solemnity. 

During two months an extraordinary anxiety 
had agitated every class of society in Brest. It had 
been necessary to hold twenty maternal conferences 
in order to decide that we should all be dressed 
alike in simple robes of white gauze, with crowns 
of violets, the imperial flower, upon our heads. 
Great diplomacy had been required and exercised 
in selecting the young girls chosen to represent the 
navy. The daughters of the officers were, for the 
most part, exceedingly pretty, and nearly all were 
entitled to the honor by virtue of the positions of 
their families. But how many little stratagems 
were required to accord this privilege satisfac- 
torily I 

Mme. Laplace, wife of the admiral, spent her 
whole time in conferences with upholsterers regard- 
ing the arrangement and furnishing of the Em- 
press's apartments in the prefecture. How was she 
to divine the tastes and preferences of her Majesty ? 
What were her favorite colors? How difficult it 
was to decide between the crisp freshness of muslin 
and the greater richness of silken hangings ! As to 
the question of the Empress's bed, it nearly unset- 



12 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

tied the good lady's reason. It appeared that she 
had discovered her Majesty's partiality for a par- 
ticular kind of pillow. But what was this kind? 
Kound or square, of down or hair \ If the Empress 
did not have her usual pillows, of course, she would 
sleep ill, which would result in a headache, for 
which terrible catastrophe Mme. Laplace would 
never forgive herself. 

However, when the Empress's suite arrived at 
the prefecture, one of her women of the bed- 
chamber drew from a trunk a flat horse-hair pillow, 
which she placed on the royal bed, and thus put an 
end to Mme. Laplace's overwhelming anxiety. 

In the evening, after a grand dinner, the whole 
town was magnificently illuminated. The Cours 
d J Ajot, that superb promenade bordered by rows of 
fine old trees, which commands the harbor, was one 
immense dome of light, and the Bretons beholding 
it cried out in naive astonishment at their own han- 
diwork : " Eemet er Baradoz, n'euz netra ebed ka- 
eroc'h ! " (If it is not Paradise, it is no less beauti- 
ful !) 

The Emperor and Empress, profoundly touched 
by this reception whose enthusiasm seemed worthy 
of a purer age, mingled familiarly with the crowd 
of Bretons, rejoicing in the spontaneous tributes of 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 13 

loyalty and admiration which were demonstrated 
in snch a charming and ingenuous fashion. 

The next day a ball was given for their Majes- 
ties. In order to accommodate the greatest possible 
number, the grain market had been utilized as a 
hall, and the immense edifice was transformed into 
a most sumptuous gala-place. The bare walls had 
completely disappeared behind huge panels of mir- 
rors and scarlet velvet hangings ; the ceiling was no 
longer visible, being completely shrouded by artis- 
tically arranged draperies of multicolored flags ; 
while eight graduated tiers of seats encompassed 
the vast space and, adorned by hundreds of fair 
women in full ball costume, formed a marvelously 
effective bit of decorative display. 

At half-past nine a loud voice announced : u The 
Emperor ! " and in a twinkling the whole assem- 
blage had risen, the Emperor and Empress immedi- 
ately appeared, while the orchestra played the air 
of Queen Hortense. From that moment every- 
thing in the great hall, save one woman, was a blank 
to me. The fete, the people, the brilliant illumina- 
tion, all vanished, and I remained completely en- 
chanted, as if under a spell, having eyes and ears 
for no one else in the whole hall but the Empress, 

who, standing out from all the rest, seemed to me 
2 



14 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

an apparition of loveliness. The impression that 
I then received was so acute that, in recalling it 
after a lapse of so many years, the scene is as vivid 
to my recollection as if I had jnst participated in it. 

The Empress wore a dress of pale blue tulle 
threaded with silver. Her incomparably beautiful 
bust and exquisitely modeled shoulders rose above 
its delicate folds as from a cloud, as, with a move- 
ment replete with grace and dignity, she made a 
sweeping, gracious bow, including the whole of the 
admiring, attentive throng in a long glance from 
her soft, luminous blue eyes. 

This form of salutation, which I think quite pe- 
culiar to her Majesty, possessed an irresistible 
charm. It was at the same time imposing and un- 
assuming; while evincing a consciousness of her 
right to the homage due a sovereign, it at the same 
time possessed a subtle charm which seduced all 
hearts by its feminine graciousness. She Wore her 
hair drawn away from the temples and confined up- 
on the top of the head by a diadem formed of a fret- 
work of diamonds. The expression of her delicate 
features, though exceedingly brilliant, was as pure 
and youthful as that of a very young girl, while 
about her attire there was a refinement of taste, an 
air of simplicity, which made the magnificent display 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 15 

of jewels that covered her corsage and neck appear 
a most natural adornment — whereas a woman of less 
elegant personality would have been completely 
overwhelmed by such splendor. 

The Empress's height was above the average; 
in fact, she was rather tall. Her features were very 
regular, and the wonderfully delicate line of her pro- 
file had well-nigh the perfection of an old cameo, 
besides possessing an indescribable charm, an indi- 
vidual fascination of most peculiar power, which 
made it impossible to compare her with any other 
woman. Her brow was high and narrow, some- 
what depressed at the temples, while the line of her 
long, fine eyebrows was a trifle oblique ; the lids, 
which she had a habit of frequently dropping, fol- 
lowing the line of the brows, veiled eyes which 
were set rather too closely together — a marked pe- 
culiarity in the Empress's physiognomy. These 
eyes were of a deep, intense blue, enveloped in 
shadow, full of soul, energy, and sweetness ; they 
alone would have rendered any face remarkable. 
The delicate nose, perfectly proportioned to its 
finely-cut nostrils, bespoke aristocratic descent, 
while the mouth was very small, with graciousness 
in every curve, and its lips ever animated by her 
irresistibly winning smile. Her teeth were brill- 



16 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

iantly white ; her chin delicately molded, its pure 
oval becoming a little fuller as it merged into the 
cheeks ; her complexion of a clear, transparent brill- 
iancy. Beneath the fine texture of the skin showed 
a tracery of blue veins, reminding One of the 
vaunted purple blood of the old Spanish nobility. 
The setting of the head upon the long, slender neck 
was exquisite, shoulders, bosom, and arms resem- 
bling the most perfect works of statuary art. Her 
figure was erect and well rounded ; her hands were 
small and shapely ; and her feet smaller than those 
of a twelve-year-old child. She was dignified and 
yet gracious of bearing, with a native distinction of 
manner, and a remarkably free and easy carriage ; 
but, above all, the real secret of her incomparable 
charm lay, I think, in the complete harmony ex- 
isting between her physical and moral being. 

Such appeared to me her Majesty, the Empress 
Eugenie, when I first had the honor of seeing her in 
the radiance of her glory, in the fresh prime of her 
youth and exquisite beauty, adorned with all the 
gifts which nature and fortune could bestow, lav- 
ishly endowed with all the qualities which could 
ennoble a woman's soul. 

In order to instruct their Majesties in a knowl- 
edge of the costumes of the country there had been 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 17 

arranged a parade of Breton peasants, and immedi- 
ately after the opening quadrille a procession of 
fifty couples defiled past the Emperor and Empress, 
each bearing the banner of its canton. They ad- 
vanced slowly to the imperial estrade and bent in 
reverences as humble as if they had been made to 
the altar itself ; then, to the sound of music, they 
executed their national dances, winding in and out 
in that slow and melancholy movement which often 
continues for hours at Breton festivities. This long 
parade of banners ; the queer, rich costumes ; the 
grave, proud bearing of the young— and for the 
most part handsome — men with their long, floating 
hair ; the women in their fine and picturesque attire, 
who mingled grace and dignity with their native 
simplicity ; the wild, plaintive strains of the primi- 
tive music ; all this, in the midst of the brilliant 
glow of light and gorgeousness of setting, produced 
a most dramatic and unusual effect which made it 
easy to fancy one's self transported back to an en- 
tertainment of the middle ages. 

After this curious episode the ball resumed its 
more conventional character. One of my relatives, 
M. Perier d'Hauterive, lieutenant in the navy, 
asked me to waltz, and we danced inside the circle 
formed before their Majesties by the Bretons, who 



13 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

had remained to become spectators in tlieir turn. 
The Empress observed me and, after regarding me 
attentively for a moment, drew npon me the atten- 
tion of the Emperor, who asked mj name. He was 
told that I was the granddaughter of Admiral 
Eouvet, the senior commanding officer of the navy. 

I was not slow in noticing the attention which 
I had inspired, and on returning to my mother's 
side remarked joyously, " The Empress noticed 
me ! " 

Before leaving the ball their Majesties made the 
circuit of the hall, saluting every one as they passed. 
"When they reached the spot where I was stationed 
the Empress stopped and was good enough to speak 
to me. Trembling with emotion and pleasure, I 
found it difficult to even command my voice suffi- 
ciently to stammer forth the most timid monosyl- 
lables. 

I was far from suspecting that these few simple 
words, such as sovereigns have at their disposal for 
everybody, were to become the arbiters of my des- 
tiny. 

On the morning of Thursday, the 12th of Au- 
gust, the Emperor and Empress left Brest, in post- 
carriages bearing the imperial livery, to continue 
their journey across Brittany, which was .one tri- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 19 

umphal progress. Everywhere along their ronte 
they left pleasant testimonials of their liberality 
and warm interest in the country's progress and 
welfare. 

The eagerness and cordiality of the people were 
overwhelming. All the horses in the country were 
put in requisition to follow the Emperor, and it was 
a by no means unusual sight to see worthy Breton 
cures following their parishioners, mingling in the 
tide of picturesque cavalcades, galloping bravely 
from one burgh to another, and serving as escort 
until their places should be filled by their neighbors 
in the next town. 

On the following Sunday, the 15th of August, 
and the Emperor's birthday, their Majesties assisted 
at mass in the sanctuary of Saint Anne of Auray, 
between Yannes and Lorient; and on Thursday, 
the 19th, they arrived at Saint- Malo. The Emperor 
had signified his wish to see my grandfather, Ad- 
miral Bouvet, during his journey. The latter, who 
was then very aged, lived in great retirement at 
Saint- Servan, near Saint-Malo, a rival sister town ; 
therefore it was that my father, commander of a 
battalion of marine infantry, hastened to my grand- 
father's assistance, and I obtained permission to ac- 
company him. . . - . - .J. 



20 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Upon the Emperor's arrival, my grandfather, at 
the head of deputations from Saint -Servan and 
Saint-Malo, advanced to welcome him, and upon 
perceiving the old officer their Majesties paid him 
the honor of descending from their carriage to con- 
verse with him. 

" Admiral," said the Emperor to him, " I am 
proud to salute one of the ever-to-be-envied heroes 
of our naval wars with India. I desire to see you 
in the Senate, and I wish to announce to you, 
myself, that a chair has been reserved for you 
there." 

" Sire," my grandfather replied, " I am now 
only an old man ; my career is finished ; you need 
more able men to serve you. Permit me to end my 
days in the calm and peaceful retreat that I have 
chosen." 

The Emperor was pleased to insist, but my 
grandfather remarked : 

• " If, sire, you indeed wish to honor my name, 
be so good, I beg you, as to transfer your kind in- 
tentions to my son." 

Little used to seeing such favors repelled, the 
Emperor promised to follow my father's career, and 
indeed from that moment his kind interest in us 
never failed. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 21 

The town of Saint- Malo also tendered a ball to 
their Majesties, and my father accepted the hospi- 
talities pressed npon us by his friends, in order to 
save me the long ride back to Saint-Servan. 

In those days the question of securing carriages 
for a ball in a place like Saint-Malo was most per- 
plexing. A stable-keeper who owned three or four 
old berlins would go from one house to another, 
and thus in turn conduct the fair freight to its des- 
tination. As we had arrived at Saint-Malo at the 
last moment, and had made no previous arrange- 
ments, the hour at which we could be accommo- 
dated was so late that I begged my father to allow 
me to walk — the weather being very warm and the 
distance trifling. But, unfortunately, just as we 
were about to start, a severe storm came up, accom- 
panied by a perfect deluge of rain. In one minute 
the narrow streets of Saint-Malo were transformed 
into rivers, and it was quite out of the question to 
think of traversing them on foot, in evening toi- 
let. 

Moved by my disappointment and chagrin, my 
father made every attempt to procure some means 
of transportation, but all in vain. At last, having 
related my misfortune to an old friend, whose car- 
riage had been placed at the disposal of half a dozen 



22 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

acquaintances, she kindly took compassion on me, 
and offered my father a sort of chair on two 
wheels, which resembled a wheelbarrow, being 
pushed from behind by a man, and w r hich w T as 
known in the last century as a "vinaigrette " It 
was in this singular equipage that I was conveyed 
to the town hall, where the ball was held. 

This time I could contemplate the Empress at 
my ease. I admired the grace and elegance of the 
Comtesse de la Bedoyere, lady in waiting, her re- 
pose of manner, and the easy way in which she re- 
plied to the Empress when, turning a little toward 
her, her Majesty addressed to her some remark ; 
and I was reproaching myself for the awkwardness 
which had paralyzed me at Brest, when the Em- 
press, recognizing me, indicated my position to the 
Emperor, who immediately approached and opened 
a conversation with me. 

The easy accessibility, simplicity of manner, and 
exquisite and cordial courtesy of the Emperor can 
not be described ; nevertheless, I remained speech- 
less. The Empress perceived my embarrassment, 
she afterward told me, and, joining us, addressed 
me so kindly and familiarly that I began to recover 
myself a little. Then, for the first time, I discov- 
ered that she had a slight foreign accent, rather 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 23 

English than Spanish, which made her pronunci- 
ation extremely fascinating. 

Just then General Fleury approached and said a 
few words in an undertone to the Emperor. The 
Empress made me a gesture of farewell and re- 
turned to her place. A hall for dancing had been 
arranged in the upper story, and it had been dis- 
covered that the ceilings of the salons . beneath 
threatened disaster. The constant movement above 
shook the timbers so greatly that the chandeliers 
oscillated in a really terrifying manner. A happy 
inspiration came to the Empress. She calmly took 
the Emperor's arm and, bowing gracefully to the 
right and left, with her charming smile, withdrew 
from the apartment and entered the supper-room, 
followed by the greater part of the assemblage. 

It then became an easy matter to induce the 
few who remained in the salons to retire, and as 
soon as the rooms were emptied the doors were 
closed. The greatest danger, therefore — that of a 
panic — was thus easily obviated, and if the ball 
drew to a somewhat abrupt termination, it fortu- 
nately was not characterized by the terrible catas- 
trophe which might have occurred. 

Early the next morning their Majesties left 
Saint-Malo. I witnessed their departure ; and the 



24 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

Empress, distinguishing me amid the crowd, wafted 
me a kiss of adieu from her beautiful lips, which 
left me in a complete state of subjugation. From 
that moment, in the depths of my girlish, heart, I 
vowed her an unswerving devotion, and, with my 
mind constantly dwelling upon her gracious notice 
of me, I kept myself au courant of all the doings 
of the court, deeply interested in the smallest de- 
tails, and following from afar the life and well-be- 
ing of her who had been to me a revelation of grace 
and beauty. 

Yet, alas ! even at that very time a crimson 
cloud had begun to dawn upon that fair horizon, 
casting upon the tender heart of that loving wife 
and mother, of that gentle queen crowned with the 
homage of a people, of that woman whose lot in life 
appeared so brilliant and was perhaps so greatly 
envied, the shadow of an ineffable anguish. In the 
beginning of that very year, 1858, in a concise dis- 
patch, the " Moniteur Officiel " announced to an in- 
dignant nation the attempt of Orsini : 

" Paris, January 15, 1858. 

" On Thursday evening, at half -past eight, just 
as their Majesties, the Emperor and Empress, drew 
up at the Opera-House, three heavy explosions were 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 25 

heard. A considerable number of persons standing 
outside the theatre and several soldiers of the escort 
and of the Paris guard were wounded, two fatally. 
Neither the Emperor nor Empress were harmed. 
The Emperor's hat was torn by a projectile, and 
General Poguet, aide-de-camp, who was seated on 
the box of the carriage, was slightly wounded in the 
neck. Two footmen were badly injured, one of the 
horses attached to his Majesty's carriage killed, and 
the vehicle badly defaced. 

" On their entrance to the theatre the Emperor 
and Empress were received with the wildest enthu- 
siasm, and the performance was continued. On 
learning of the event, their Imperial Highnesses 
Prince Jerome Napoleon and Prince Napoleon, her 
Imperial Highness Princesse Mathilde, their High- 
nesses the Princes Murat, several ministers and 
marshals, the marshal in command of the army of 
Paris, the members of the diplomatic corps, the pre- 
fect of the Seine and of the police, the procureur 
general of the Parisian bar, and the jprocureicr im- 
perial hastened to their Majesties. 

" Information was at once given to the gendarme- 
rie, and several arrests were made. Their Majesties 
left the Opera at midnight. The boulevards had 
been spontaneously illuminated, and the route of the 



26 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

Emperor and Empress was alive with a huge con- 
course of people, who greeted their Majesties with 
the most touching and enthusiastic acclamations. 

" Upon their arrival at the Tuileries their Majes- 
ties found a large number of persons awaiting them, 
among whom were the English Ambassador, the 
President of the Senate, the members of the diplo- 
matic corns, and several Senators." 

"What the official dispatch failed to state was 
the horror of that scene in the narrow street Le 
Peletier, where the Opera-House was then situated. 
The vibration of the explosion had completely ex- 
tinguished the gas, and in the shroud of utter dark- 
ness, the cries of the wounded, the panic of the ter- 
rified crowd who precipitated themselves under the 
very feet of the horses of the guard, the confusion 
and excitement made up a fearful and never-to-be- 
forgotten experience. 

The attempt had been made just as the Em- 
peror's carriage drew up at the Opera-IIouse. An 
inspector of police, thinking that their Majesties 
must have been injured, and fearing further explo- 
sions, hastened to open the door. The Emperor, 
not recognizing him, and seeing a man, as it were, 
rushing upon him, believed him to bean assassin 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 27 

who had taken advantage of the general confu- 
sion to kill him, and dealt him a vigorous blow 
with his fist which sent the poor man rolling in the 
gutter. 

" I am quite reassured," said the unfortunate in- 
spector, as he picked himself up. 

The Empress hurriedly followed the Emperor 
from the carriage. Her cheek was bleeding from a 
cut made by a piece of broken glass, and her white 
satin gown was stained with blood. 

Their Majesties owed their salvation to the over- 
anxiety of the regicides, whose intention had de- 
feated itself by loading the bombs with such an im- 
mense quantity of dynamite that instead of accom- 
plishing their deadly mission by properly exploding 
they had, in bursting, been pulverized into very 
powder. The Empress still preserves the hat which 
the Emperor wore that night. It appears scarcely 
defaced, but upon holding it up to the light one 
can see that it is pierced by a thousand tiny holes, 
as if it had sustained a charge of small shot. 

The Empress retained her calmness in a wonder- 
ful degree, and when she appeared in the royal box 
she smiled her thanks to the audience in her usual 
sweet manner, acknowledging in queenly fashion 
the ovation which was intended as much for her as 



28 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

for the Emperor. Yet a horrible anxiety was tort- 
uring her meanwhile, not to be quelled until an 
emissary returned from the Tuileries to assure her 
that nothing had been attempted against her child. 
Her first thought, a natural one to a mother, had 
been that the life of the Prince Imperial might also 
have been menaced ; and those moments of ago- 
nized uncertainty, when she sat with a forced smile 
curving her lips, were her most painful memory of 
that whole dreadful evening. 

Perhaps the still vivid impression of that dark 
episode contributed to make the Empress value more 
highly the sincere and spontaneous ovations which 
she experienced from the worthy Bretons. Cer- 
tainly, from that time, even after receiving number- 
less manifestations, her Majesty always retained a 
tender recollection of her travels through Brittany, 
ever recalling with emotion the cordial reception 
that she had there met with. . 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 29 



II. 



The ten following years carried France to the 
apogee of its glory. Ten years of wise and moder- 
ate administration, of devotion to the best interests 
of the country, gave to the empire a strength which 
the disaffected despaired of undermining ; and on 
all sides the imperial government won to itself ad- 
herents from the vacillating and doubtful anti-roy- 
alists, most of whom had held aloof, either because 
they cherished a secret hope of an overthrow of 
power which should give the administration into 
their hands, or because they desired to see the 
policy of the Emperor bear fruit before subscribing 
to it. 

Immense undertakings, directed with skill and 
wisdom, with an artistic taste which few periods of 
our history have left similar evidences of, trans- 
formed the capital. Throughout France there 
arose in the various towns fine edifices, hospitals 

and palaces ; railroads, docks, and wharves were 
3 



30 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

continually being built, distributing our commer- 
cial products throughout the world. An unexam- 
pled impetus was given to all the great industries. 
France was becoming the financial center of the 
world, and French investments were spreading 
throughout every quarter of the globe, testifying to 
the prosperity and glory of the nation. 

The Emperor had devoted his life to the study 
of modern social problems. He was passionately 
French in feeling, loved the people as a father loves 
his children, and their sufferings were acutely 
shared by him. Believing in the theory that great 
crimes are the outcome of great suffering, he re- 
garded misery as a hideous, all-devouring monster, 
which must be fought at every point and by every 
possible means. He applied himself to the devel- 
opment of philanthropic enterprises and humani- 
tarian ideas, inspired in all his efforts by the great 
suggestion that " Providence often reserves to one 
human being the privilege of being the instrument 
of salvation of the many." A wondrous benevo- 
lence, " that virtue of grand souls," was the domi- 
nating trait in the Emperor's character, and he 
would fain have spread it like a mantle over all 
who suffered, individuals as well as nations. 

When, at the close of his life, heart-broken at 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 31 

the evils under which his beloved country was 
laboring, seeing the curse of w r ar and revolution 
united in triumph over himself alone, the Emperor 
had the wretched misfortune to survive all these dis- 
asters, he must at least have had the mournful satis- 
faction of feeling, amid all his calamities, that he 
had given to France the means of rescue, that he 
had fashioned for her the key to liberate herself, 
had instilled into her veins the power of life and 
self-sustenance, which should one day cause her to 
regain her rank among nations. 

Even as early as the close of 1858 it was easy to 
predict war with Austria. The marriage of a prin- 
cess of the house of Savoy, the Princesse Clotilde, 
with Prince Napoleon, the nearest relative of the 
Emperor, celebrated in January, 1859, paved the 
way to an alliance with Piedmont. In May war 
was declared, and the Emperor took command of 
the army in Italy. Military history describes the 
active part which the Emperor played throughout 
the campaign. A people delivered from foreign 
oppression hailed our soldiers victors, dragging 
themselves on their knees in gratitude after their 
liberator, who traversed Italy under a shower of 
flowers. 

Nice and Savoy were the trophies which the 



32 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

Emperor affixed to the imperial crown in memory 
of this conquest. 

On the 14th of the following August, Paris cele- 
brated the return of our troops with all the pride 
and intoxication of triumph. The words uttered 
by the Emperor at the banquet at which he assem- 
bled about him the chiefs of the army of Italy are, 
from the lips of a victorious sovereign, a model 
of dignity, wisdom, and moderation. They are 
worthy of repetition. 

" Gentlemen," said the Emperor, " the pleasure 
which I experience in finding myself again with the 
majority of the chiefs of the Italian army would be 
quite complete were it not clouded by the regret of 
feeling that so well organized and excellent a force 
is about to disband. As sovereign and general-in- 
chief, I thank you again for the confidence you 
have reposed in me. It was most flattering to me, 
who have never before commanded an army, to 
find such ready obedience on the part of those 
who have had such a vast experience of warfare. 
If success has crowned our efforts, I am proud to 
attribute it in great measure to those devoted and 
experienced generals who rendered my command 
easy, owing to the fact that, animated by the 
sacred fire of patriotism, they presented to the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 33 

army a heroic example of duty and contempt of 
death. 

" Part of our soldiers are about to go home to 
their firesides ; you, also, will soon return to a life 
of peace. Nevertheless, do not forget what we 
have experienced together. Let the recollection of 
obstacles surmounted, of perils escaped, of faults re- 
trieved, return often to your remembrance; for to 
every soldier past experience is part of the very sci- 
ence of war. 

" In commemoration of the Italian campaign I 

am about to distribute medals to all the participants, 

and I wish that you here to-day shall be the first to 

wear them. May they often recall me to your 

thoughts, and in reading the glorious names traced 
upon them let each say to himself, ' If France has 

done thus much for a friendly neighbor, what will 
she not do for her own independence ? ' I propose 
a toast to the army." 

Marechal MacMahon was created Due de Ma- 
genta, in memory of the victory which we had so 
fortunately acquired ; and the Emperor granted a 
full and entire amnesty to all the politically con- 
demned. The close of 1859 and the beginning of 
1860 were devoted to diplomatic negotiations which 
established the new constitution of united Italy. 



34: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

At the request of the Emperor, Prince Metter- 
nich arrived in Paris as ambassador from Austria. 
It was a very important post for so young a man, 
the prince being scarcely thirty. He had made his 
debut in the service in Paris in 1852, and had left 
behind him the pleasantest recollections. He was 
accompanied by his young wife, nee Comtesse Pau- 
line Chandor, that wondrOusly brilliant and popular 
woman whose elegance, grace, and wit have been 
so often quoted. 

The Princesse de Metternich left in Parisian so- 
ciety a memory which never will be effaced, and 
which was for many years unequaled by that of 
any other woman. It is a difficult task to meddle 
with so renowned a personality. The name of the 
Princesse de Metternich has been bandied by every 
chronicler of the court. She has even been the tar- 
get for fiercely passionate criticisms, but, like the 
salamander that traverses the flames unscathed, the 
Princesse de Metternich, with her uncommon and 
exquisite self-command and the lofty dignity of her 
life, has gone through the fire of criticism and mali- 
cious exaggeration without scorching one of the 
feathers of her snowy wings. 

In Parisian society, which has for some time as- 
sumed a cosmopolitan character, in which all doors 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 35 

are opened to any who may present themselves 
bearing the smallest credentials of birth, fortune, or 
talent, a certain austerity has been adopted, owing 
to the partial fusion of salons wherein one meets 
but few persons of one's acquaintance among the 
many guests. People show themselves very easily 
shocked if a person at all en vue deviates in the 
least from the conventionalities. This is not the 
case in other lands, where class distinctions are very 
plainly marked, and therefore much less numerous, 
and where alliances within the charmed circles are 
constantly cementing an exclusive and general inti- 
macy of relationship. 

The Princesse de Metternich, quite recently 
married, had made a brilliant entree in Yiennese 
society, where she had been treated like a spoiled 
child. She arrived in Paris with a marked origi- 
nality of manner, a certain disdain of fashion, and a 
readiness of repartee to which we were not accus- 
tomed. She was an easy prey for reporters in 
search of material, and they did not spare her. The 
critical ability of persons who never appeared at 
court was exercised upon her, and, aided by ma- 
liciousness and envy, they freely reported and dis- 
cussed, at her expense, eccentricities of which she 
never was guilty. Thus about the name of the 



36 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Princesse de Metternich was woven a legend which 
she was possibly wrong in disdaining to correct at 
the time, but to which later years have done justice. 

Many portraits have been painted of the prin- 
cess. I do not know whether her mouth was too 
large or her lips were too full, whether the arch of 
her nostrils gave to her nose a curious and unusual 
curve, or whether the contour of her face was irregu- 
lar ; but surely nothing could have been more agree- 
able than the ensemble of this mobile and spirituelle 
face, lighted by its two great, laughing brown eyes. 
When it can be said of a woman, as it was of Mme. 
de Metternich, " She is charmingly ugly," it must 
be that she is possessed of wonderful powers of fas- 
cination. One of her portraits, painted by Win- 
terhalter, and extraordinarily like her, is really 
pretty. 

From the tips of her little feet to the roots of her 
ruddy chestnut hair, in all her gestures and move- 
ments, she was unmistakably grande dame. And 
even when carried beyond herself by the animation 
of her gay spirit, by pleasure, and the very joyous- 
ness of her exuberant youthfulness, she surprised 
the world with an outburst of her singular origi- 
nality, whether it took the form of comedy, in 
which she excelled, or that of a gay fete which she 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 37 

alone possessed the secret power of improvising in 
a manner that delighted all participants, yet through- 
out all she ever remained grande dame to the end 
of her finger-tips. 

When the Princesse de Metternich entered the 
Tuileries ball-room, with her tall, slender, almost 
thin figure, her shoulders bared very low, her brow 
scintillating with diamonds, and her long, trailing 
skirts, it was impossible to imagine a more distin- 
guished-looking person or a more aristocratic bear- 
ing. She possessed that inimitable air of breeding 
which is bestowed by birth and rearing. She was 
indeed an ambassadress worthy to represent a great 
country. Even in the way her head rested on her 
slender neck there was a suggestion of the heroine 
capable of dying in a noble cause. 

Once, at Compiegne, she spoke to me in glowing 
terms of her admiration and attachment for the 
Empress. 

" I would like," she said, " to be her Princesse 
de Lamballe." 

" More than one Frenchwoman," I replied, 
" would covet that honor." 

How little we thought then that the dark tra- 
ditions of history were to be more than equaled in 
our own experience ! 



38 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Much has been said of the intimacy of the Prin- 
cesse de Metternich at the Tuileries. With the ex- 
ception of fetes at Paris, Compiegne, or Fontaine- 
bleau, and formal audiences, which were of rare 
occurrence, I never saw Mine, de Metternich with 
the Empress. Her Majesty had a great sympathy 
for this fascinating woman. She admired her brill- 
iant mind, and conversed familiarly with her when 
state or social occasions brought them together ; but 
the Empress was intimate with no one. Excepting 
her young cousin, Princesse Anna Murat, since be- 
come Duchesse de Mouchy, of whom the Empress 
was particularly fond, no woman besides her ladies 
in waiting — at least unless the circumstance was 
very singular — was received unceremoniously at the 
Tuileries. 

It was a requirement of court etiquette which 
the Empress sometimes regretted, envying often the 
freedom and independence which other women ex- 
ercise in their private relations of life. But it was a 
necessary barrier, and the Empress herself recog- 
nized it as such, and felt the wisdom of a partial 
isolation from her sex which obviated many pos- 
sible situations of an inconvenient character. 

The natural attraction which one feels for a 
woman as agreeable as the Princesse de Metter- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 39 

nich, has been confounded with relations which 
would place her upon a footing of special and pecul- 
iar intimacy with the Empress — a condition of 
things which had no existence. The Princesse de 
Metternich has been blamed for furnishing the 
court with an example of unbridled extravagance in 
dress and Sybaritish luxury of living. "Where, then, 
is there a young and wealthy woman of high position 
who does not love to adorn herself ? and is it not 
expected of people of elevated station that they 
shall live brilliantly ? If other less fortunate women 
had been guilty of the weakness of trying to rival 
the elegance and variety of the princess's toilets, 
they must have failed through lack of her intel- 
ligence and exquisite taste, for such qualities are 
beyond the possibility of acquirement. 

In her style of dressing she showed a distinctly 
foreign originality. She sent to Yienna for many 
of her dresses, but generally she collaborated with 
"Worth, the great milliner whose taste and skill 
amount to positive genius, who sets the fashion and 
makes of dressmaking a fine art. 

Every year she had her diamonds reset, thus 
giving to her ornaments an infinite variety of shape 
and design. Her horses and carriages, her livery of 
black and yellow — the Austrian colors — were unex- 



40 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

ceptionable, and no one could have excelled her in 
managing and ordering her household. Her hotel 
in the Rue de Yarennes was on a footing of the 
most refined elegance. She was benevolent, and 
helped all who appealed to her with discrimi- 
nation and kindness, and, notwithstanding the 
constant demands of society upon her time, the 
greater part of her life was devoted to her family 
duties. 

Immediately upon her arrival in Paris the prin- 
cess selected for herself a circle of acquaintances, 
bestowing an equally cordial greeting upon the but- 
terflies of society and persons eminent in politics 
and art. Despite every change of time or circum- 
stance, she remained faithful to her friends, leaving 
behind her, at the time of her departure from Paris 
in 1870, a host of pleasant memories and warm at- 
tachments. 

She possessed the rare and charming faculty of 
animating and enlivening any company in which 
she might appear by the mere power of her strong 
individuality. At Compiegne, where she passed 
several days every year, she was the very soul of 
the circle of guests, interesting herself in every- 
thing, scattering broadcast the sparkling jewels of 
her wit and gayety, captivating old and young alike 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 41 

by her play of fancy, which was by turns serious or 
lively, but never vulgar or malicious. 

It was the annual custom for the court to spend 
the 15th of November, the Empress's birthday, at 
Compiegne, where among themselves the guests 
took part in charades or some unpublished comedy, 
or arranged tableaux vivants. The Princesse de 
Metternich excelled in this species of amusement, 
whose preparations were conducted with a great 
show of mystery to which the Empress lent herself 
with ready complacency. 

One year Watteau's u Dejeuner Champetre " was 
chosen for representation, and the princess under- 
took the distribution of characters and costumes. 
The Duchesse de Fersigny was to take part in it, 
but, disliking the costume chosen for her, she de- 
clared that she would wear what she chose and ap- 
pear with her hair undressed. The blonde locks of 
Mme. de Persigny were of a remarkable beauty. 

" I want people to see my hair," she said, with 
that little lisp of hers which always made her speech 
sound childish. 

" But it is impossible," declared Mme. de Met- 
ternich. " You must, on the contrary, wear a small 
coiffure high on your head and powdered." 

"No," replied Mme. de Persigny, stubbornly; 



42 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

" we are doing this for our own amusement, and it 
amuses me to wear my hair down." 

" Yery well, then, if you won't do like the rest 
of us, don't take part in the tableau at all," said 
Mme. de Metterniclu 

At last, thoroughly exasperated by Mme. de 
Persigny's obstinacy, the princess went to the Em- 
press and related the whole affair, begging her to 
use her influence with Mme. de Persigny. 

The Empress took the matter as a good joke. 

" Let her do it," she advised. " It will be at 
least a novelty which may prove amusing." 

" No, no," repeated the princess, in disgust ; 
" she will spoil the whole thing." 

" But, see, my dear princess," said the Empress, 
soothingly, " what actual harm can come of it ? She 
will be pretty enough under any circumstances. I 
would not quarrel with her for so simple a cause. 
Indulge her whim. Poor Madame de Persigny ! 
You know her mother is mad." 

" Ah ! her mother is mad, is she ? " returned 
the princess, beside herself with anger. " Well, 
my father is mad, too, and I will not yield any 
more than she." 

Indeed, the Comte Chandor, who had been 
passionately fond of horses and who was considered 



COURT OF TEE TUILEEIES. 43 

the best rider in Europe, had met with go many 
accidents that his mind had become completely 
wrecked. Some one had collected an album contain- 
ing about fifty pictures representing the various 
equestrian performances of the Comte Chandor, 
and after seeing them one only wondered that he 
had come out of them alive. 

The Princesse do Metternieh was not only 
charming, but, beneath a somewhat worldly and 
frivolous exterior, she possessed a keen and ready 
intelligence. Thoroughly delightful and distin- 
guished, she exercised a great influence over her 
husband, who held her in high esteem. 

From the manner in which the Austrian em- 
bassy to Paris was then conducted, I should judge 
that the post might again be filled by the Prince 
and Princesse de Metternieh with honor to the 
present administration. The princess is one of 
those rare women who would be a power even 
among the political parties of the present time. 

Prince Richard de Metternieh was a perfect 
type of a grand foreign seignior. Yery tall, with a 
somewhat heavily molded face, of which the features, 
however, were very handsome, and a long blonde 
beard, his manners were of the most polished de- 
scription and his attitude toward the fair sex most 



44 -RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

gallant and charming. He was a superb musician, 
and his touch was so finished and powerful that when 
he took his place at the piano to play his favorite 
waltzes or German melodies, one would almost have 
thought himself listening to a full orchestra. 

Owing to a splendid uprightness of character, 
he was enabled to fulfill the most delicate diplo- 
matic tasks with unfailing honor and credit. He it 
was upon whom the Empress conferred the honor 
of conducting her from the Tuileries on the ever 
memorable 4th of September. 

After the war of 1870 he left the service. He 
and his wife pass part of the year at Vienna, where 
they occupy a high position, and the rest upon their 
very extensive estates in Bohemia. The princess 
makes only flying visits to Paris. In encountering 
her bright, charming glance and her winning smile 
one forgets that she is a grandmother, and their 
spell is potent to resurrect a vanished, delightful 
past and to people it with long-departed but for- 
ever-living personages. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 45 



III. 



Ik the month of August, 1860, the Emperor 
and Empress paid a visit to the newly annexed 
provinces of France. 

Aix, Annecy, Chambery, and Nice vied with 
each other in feting the sovereign and his consort. 

The Empress made an excursion to that magnifi- 
cent part of the Alps which she had never seen — 
Chamounix, the Mer de Glace. Then, returning 
through the south of France, their Majesties 
stopped at Marseilles in order to take possession of 
the chateau which that city had offered to the Em- 
peror — the same which some years since the Em- 
press gave hack to the city for the purpose of 
founding a hospital. Thence their Majesties went 
to Toulon and embarked on the imperial yacht 
L'Aigle for a voyage to Corsica and Algeria. 

It was in the midst of this really triumphal 
progress that the Empress was afflicted by the first 
great sorrow of her life. Her oldest sister, the 



46 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Duchesse d'Albe, suffering from an incurable mal- 
ady, had been for some time gradually failing. The 
seriousness of her condition had been concealed 
from the Empress, who was devotedly fond of 
her ; but of a sudden the disease made such rapid 
strides that death supervened before the duchess 
could summon her absent sister to bid her fare- 
well. 

The sad tidings awaited the Empress's arrival at 
Algiers. In order to break the news gradually to 
her Majesty, who never suspected that her sister's 
life was in actual danger, she was at first informed 
of the grave nature of the duchess's illness. She 
besought the Emperor to return at once to Paris ; 
but this was impossible, as the whole town was en 
fete. 

Erom the most distant parts of the country the 
inhabitants and Arab chiefs had hastened to do 
honor to the imperial visitors. A grand ball was in 
preparation, to countermand which would have 
been to provoke a feeling of profound dissatisfac- 
tion. Heroically concealing her breaking heart, the 
Empress suppressed her own feelings to take part in 
the festivities. On leaving the ball she learned the 
truth. She still clung to the hope of seeing once 
more, even in death, the form of her whom she had 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 47 

so tenderly cherished, and consequently the Em- 
peror changed his plans, and quitting Africa al- 
most, one might say, before their feet had touched 
its soil, they embarked in haste and returned to 
France. 

On arriving at Saint-Cloud, the Empress found 
that she was too late. The obsequies had already 
taken place and all was ended. Her grief was un- 
controllable. 

The Duchesse d'Albe, who died at the age of 
thirty-five, was a most adorable woman. All who 
knew her united in praise of her grace and gentle- 
ness, her affectionate and playful humor, and her 
personal fascination. Her style of beauty was quite 
unlike that of the Empress. She was a brunette, 
with a slighter figure and more pronounced features 
than those of her sister. Her face had far less in- 
dividuality than that of the Empress, although in 
its shape and expression and in her general bearing 
there was a very marked resemblance. 

The Duchesse d'Albe was the oldest daughter 
of the Comte de Montijo, of the Spanish branch of 
the Guzmans, natives of Granada, and his wife, the 
Comtesse de Montijo, nee Kirkpatrick, who was of 
Irish extraction. At eighteen she married the Due 
d'Albe, a descendant of the Stuarts through Mare- 



48 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

chal de Berwick, in recognition of whose services 
the title of Due d'Albe had been revived. 

The young duchess was one of the greatest 
ladies in Spain, and she enjoyed, at the court of Isa- 
bella all the prerogatives that attach to her rank in 
an aristocratic and pre-eminently punctilious coun- 
try. She lived at Madrid in a truly royal palace, 
where even now one may see collected the most 
marvelous and costly productions of ancient art. 
Her establishment w T as conducted on a princely 
scale. She had herself directed the restoration of 
the palace with infinite taste and artistic feeling. 
She had among other things planned and superin- 
tended the renewing of the inlaid floors, reproduc- 
ing in their marquetry with infinite exactitude the 
designs of the paneled ceilings in the corresponding 
rooms. 

The Duchesse d'Albe left three children, a boy 
and two girls. Her son, the present Due d'Albe, 
married the daughter of the Due de Fernan-Eunez, 
who was at one time ambassador to Paris. Her 
eldest daughter is Duchesse de Tamames ; but the 
youngest, an exceedingly lovely girl, died at the 
age of twenty, only a few months after her mar- 
riage to the Due de Medina-Coeli, who was himself 
killed, while hunting, shortly after. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 49 

Since her happy childhood, the Empress had 
experienced of life nothing but its greatest favors, 
and she preserved the illusions of those who have 
never suffered any irreparable misfortunes, and who 
regard trouble as a rare and scarcely comprehended 
evil. All at once she received a cruel and unex- 
pected blow. 

Her sister had been her beloved and devoted 
companion, her sole confidante, the loyal spirit 
whose communion we all crave as a means of sup- 
port in the perplexities of life. How much more 
weighty are these perplexities to those of exalted 
rank! She formed the bond which united her 
Majesty to her happy youth, to former memories, 
to home and her native land. Above all, she was 
the asylum to which the Empress could fly daily 
for refuge from the wearisome constraint and exi- 
gencies of her position. 

Princesses reared in the strict atmosphere of 
court life continue in their element when they 
mount the throne. The honors and formalities by 
which they are surrounded, and which exact a per- 
petual restraint upon their nature, become, by force 
of habit and education, a necessary and natural part 
of life. But when one has been brought up, like 
the Empress, to enjoy all the independence which 



50 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

rank and fortune can confer ; when one has been 
wont to freely select one's friends and associates, to 
plan one's amusements ; when one has been used to 
exercising the right which pertains to all women — 
excepting those of royal station — of enjoying a per- 
fectly untrammeled freedom in the arrangement of 
the private and by far most precious affairs of life, 
it requires great strength of character, a firm self- 
control, a wonderful recognition of duty, to subject 
all one's tastes, predilections, and actions to reasons 
of state. And when, besides all this, a woman has 
been severed from home and friends, from all the 
tender associations of childhood, like an impris- 
oned bird, she feels, notwithstanding the gorgeous 
gilding of the cage, the constraint and confinement 
of the wires. One wearies terribly soon of a life of 
show and luxury. It is an onerous task to be con- 
stantly on parade. One becomes only too quickly 
indifferent to all but the burden ; and it is, I think, 
easier than those who covet grandeur suppose, to 
accommodate one's self to a humble and modest life 
after an existence weighted with the cares and obli- 
gations of wealth. 

In these days there is no role more difficult than 
that of sovereign ; and I do not allude to that of 
Prance alone. By the side of every sovereign of 



COURT OF THE TUILEEIES. 51 

Europe there appears the apprehensive face of a 
wife and mother, who leans tremblingly above her 
child's cradle, ever on the watch to protect with 
outstretched arms a menaced husband. "We see 
these royal women appearing bravely at fetes, with 
an equivocal smile curving their pale lips, and later 
we hear of them fleeing their palaces to seek a tem- 
porary place in some quiet retreat. We no longer 
have the princesses of old, whom the legends de- 
scribe as joyous of life and glorying in their reigns. 
Rather it would seem that we have the phantom of 
an expiring monarchy, watching mournfully over 
its tomb. Were melancholy to be banished from 
the world we should yet find it haunting the steps 
of a throne. 

Before her marriage, the Empress, then Com- 
tesse de Teba, had left Spain for a few months 
every year, and, accompanied by her mother, the 
Comtesse de Monti jo, had paid a visit to friends 
either in France or England. It was on one of 
these occasions — in 1852 — at a ball at the Elysee, 
that the Emperor, then President of the Republic, 
first saw his wife. 

The great beauty of the young Comtesse de 
Teba, together with her brilliant and clever mind, 
made the most profound impression upon the 



52 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

Prince-President, and immediately effaced every 
other feminine influence from his heart. 

The Emperor was devotedly and sincerely fond 
of his wife, whose grace and beauty were height- 
ened by every lovely quality of mind and soul and 
by the irresistible attractiveness of an exceptionally 
lofty spirit. 

Prince Louis JSTapoleon was not indifferent to 
the fact that luxury and display go far toward a 
successful exercise of power, and had organized a 
court of which the military element was the basis, 
and which reassembled about him the society which 
had been dispersed by the revolutionary movement 
of the preceding years. 

The estates of the crown recovered their former 
glory, and after the court retired from the Elysee, 
where the President had mingled English comfort 
with French elegance, the palace at Compiegne in 
the hunting season became the scene of renewed 
festivities, which seemed like the resurrection of a 
departed life. 

The Comtesse de Montijo and the Comtesse de 
Teba were invited thither among other guests. 
Every attention which propriety and good taste 
permitted a woman in Mile, de Monti jo's position 
to receive, the Prince-President, profoundly epris, 

* 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 53 

lavished upon the fair stranger, and soon among 
the numerous company gathered at Compiegne 
nothing was discussed but the Prince's romance. 
At once gossip arranged a marriage between 
them. 

It was said then, and has since been often re- 
peated, that skill and tact had much to do with the 
Emperor's decision, and that the well-acted indiffer- 
ence and reticence of the Comtesse de Teba, who 
had cleverly calculated their effect upon an in- 
flamed heart, triumphed over the hesitation of the 
future sovereign. 

This gossip, emanating from sufficiently low 
sources, was doubtless accredited by many of those 
whose ruling motives are pleasure or self-interest 
and whose scruples are only limited by their caprice 
or ambition. 

The life of the Empress, the universal respect 
she inspired, and which even the most infamous 
pamphlets — the bitter and demoralizing fruits of a 
revolutionary epoch — have not been able to dimin- 
ish, and which sheds to-day the sole ray of bright- 
ness upon her sorrow-clouded exile, would be suffi- 
cient reply to these calumnious imputations if they 
merited notice. 

Like all men of ardent and sensitive natures, the 



54 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Emperor, amid the various events of his life, had 
undoubtedly frequently succumbed to the tempta- 
tion of facile pleasures. When he met the Com- 
tesse de Teba he was hesitating as to whether he 
should make a purely political union ; but seeing in 
her a companion capable of conferring happiness as 
well as adorning a throne, he came to a rapid decis- 
ion, and immediately offered her the honor of shar- 
ing his destiny. 

It was the very eve of a political transformation. 
The resurrected empire seemed destined under the 
powerful dominion of popular excitement to bring 
forth a new era. The uncertain and indefinite pow- 
ers with which the nation had invested the Prince- 
President were continually undermined and nulli- 
fied by the schemes, ambitions, and jealousies that 
an incomplete constitution could not control ; and 
the Emperor plainly saw that he must be more 
strongly equipped before he could introduce into 
the country the reform and progress of which he 
had dreamed. 

When, therefore, he had been accepted by Mile, 
de Monti jo as herjiance, he said to her : 

"We are on the brink of great changes, and 
I do not wish to involve you in the risks which 
I am about to run. Return to Spain, and when 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 55 

my fate is decided we will be united. Fortune 
will smile upon me, indeed, if she leads me to 
you." 

" Whatever happens," replied Mile, de Montijo, 
" I will be your wife. If Fortune betrays you, come 
and join me in my own country. We shall be en- 
tirely independent there, and perhaps much happier 
than upon a throne." 

But Fate decided otherwise. 

The Comtesse de Teba left France wearing a 
simple gold ring on her finger and a pin which rep- 
resented a four-leafed clover of emeralds surrounded 
by brilliants. She had drawn it in a lottery organ- 
ized by the Emperor at Compiegne, and until his 
Majesty's death she always wore it every evening 
amid her other jewels, no matter what her parure 
might be composed of. Some years after the Em- 
peror's death the Empress lightened her heavy 
mourning a little, fearing that her deep weeds 
might sadden her son's young life, although even 
then she wore no colored gems; but, considering 
this first gift of the Emperor as a pledge of her 
life's happiness, she could not refrain from regard- 
ing it with a certain amount of superstition. There- 
fore, on the day of the departure of the Prince Im- 
perial for Zululand, the Empress again pinned on 



56 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

the emerald clover-leaf, and wore it conscientiously 
until the unhappy 19th of June. 

After the death of her son there remained no 
place in the Empress's sorely afflicted heart for 
human hope to lodge in, and one day at Chiselhurst 
she gave this trinket to the Duchesse de Mouchy, 
saying : 

" I long considered it a happy talisman ; it is my 
dearest relic, and I dislike to feel that it has been 
abandoned. Wear it every evening in memory of 
us. May it be to you a pledge of happiness and 
tender friendship." 

Faithful to the idea which her sympathetic 
heart was fully capable of comprehending, the 
Duchesse de Mouchy wears reverently the precious 
jewel. This little mystic symbol, witness of all the 
changing emotions of girl, wife, and motherhood, 
this little clover-leaf has presided over the destinies 
of these three conditions of life, which have each in 
turn faded away, leaving behind them a legacy of 
noble and poignant memories. Through such 
changing and diverse fortunes its imperishable 
brilliancy has known no diminution. 

The Empress loved the Emperor intensely. The 
greatness of a nature so full of strength and gentle- 
ness, the successful achievements of the princely 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 57 

heir to the greatest name in our history, who, not- 
withstanding all the reverses and buffets of fortune, 
had yet been able to conquer fate and return as 
master to the land which had exiled him, were suffi- 
cient to seduce the imagination of a romantic nature 
such as that of this true daughter of the land of 
Quixote. 

The empire having been proclaimed on the 10th 
of December, 1852, in consequence of a plebiscite 
which returned six million votes in its favor, the 
Emperor, faithful to his agreement, announced his 
marriage to the great body of the nation in the fol- 
lowing terms (" Moniteur " of January 23d, 1853) : 

" Gentlemen : I am about to gratify the desire 
so often manifested by the nation, by announcing to 
you my approaching marriage. The union which 
I am about to contract is not in accordance with the 
traditions of ancient policy, which fact I consider 
greatly to its advantage. [Sensation.] 

"France, owing to her successive revolutions, has 
abruptly severed herself from the rest of Europe, 
and it should be the aim of every sensible adminis- 
tration to aid in restoring her to the fellowship of 
the old monarchies. But this result will be much 
more surely attained by pursuing a frank and hon- 



58 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

orable policy and by scrupulous exactness in our 
transactions than by royal alliances which create 
false securities and often sacrifice national interest 
to private aggrandizement. [Applause.] Besides, 
past examples have left superstitious associations in 
the public mind. It has not forgotten that for, the 
last seventy years foreign princesses have mounted 
the steps of the throne only to see their families 
dispersed or proscribed by war or revolution. 
[Profound sensation.] One woman alone has 
seemed to bring good fortune with her and to out- 
live all the rest in the public memory, and she, the 
noble, admirable wife of General Bonaparte, was 
not descended from royal blood. [Applause and 
loud cries of i Long live the Emperor ! '] 

" But it must be remembered that, in 1810, the 
marriage of Napoleon I. with Marie-Louise was a 
great event. It was a guarantee for the future, a 
satisfaction to national pride, to see the old and 
illustrious house of Austria, with whom we had so 
long been at warfare, seek an alliance with the 
chief administrator of a new empire. On the other 
hand, was not the pride of the last reign forced to 
suffer bitter humiliation in seeing the heir of the 
crown vainly solicit for several years the alliance 
of a royal house, only to obtain at last the hand of 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 59 

a princess who, though doubtless accomplished, was 
yet of secondary rank and of different religion ? 

" "When we confront the old world with a force 
of a new principle which has lifted us to equal power 
with the most conservative dynasties, we can not 
impose ourselves upon its notice and acceptance by 
endeavoring to give an ancient appearance to our 
new coat of arms, or by seeking at all costs to ally 
ourselves with royal blood. Far better shall we suc- 
ceed by continually recalling our origin, by keeping 
our character unblemished, and by frankly assuming, 
in the sight of all Europe, the position of parvenu, 
a glorious title when it has been bestowed by the 
suffrages of a great people. [Unanimous applause.] 

" Therefore, in failing to adhere to established 
precedents, which have been heretofore closely imi- 
tated, my marriage becomes purely a private affair, 
and may be guided solely by personal predilections. 
The object of my choice is of high birth. French 
in heart and education and by the memory of the 
blood which her father shed in the empire's cause, 
she has, as a Spaniard, the advantage of having no 
family in France upon whom it would be necessary 
to confer honors and dignities. Endowed with the 
noblest qualities of the soul, she will adorn the 
throne, as in the hour of danger she would coura- 



60 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

geously support it ; Catholic and devout, she will 
address the same prayers to Heaven that I do for 
the welfare and glory of France ; gracious and be- 
nevolent, she will, I firmly believe, reproduce, in 
the same position, the noble virtues of the Empress 
Josephine. [Prolonged applause and shouts of 
4 Long live the Emperor ! Long live the Em- 
press ! '] 

" I am here, therefore, gentlemen, to say to 
France : ' I have preferred a woman whom I love 
to one whose alliance would have been of doubtful 
benefit to the country. Without being obliged to 
decline any proposals, I have simply followed my 
own inclinations, but not until I had first well con- 
sulted my reason and convictions. Finally, in plac- 
ing independence, nobility of character, and domes- 
tic welfare above the dictates of dynasties and ambi- 
tious calculations, I feel that I shall not grow less 
strong since I shall be much more independent. 
[Loud applause.] 

" I shall very soon, at Notre-Dame, present the 
Empress to the people and the army. The confi- 
dence that they have shown in me assures their 
sympathy in my choice ; and you, gentlemen, as 
you learn to know her, will, I am convinced, be- 
lieve that on this occasion I have indeed been in- 



COURT OF THE T (TILERIES. 61 

spired by Providence. [The hall fairly resounded 
with loud and prolonged applause.]" 

On the 30th of January, 1853, the marriage was 
celebrated at ISTotre-Dame with truly royal magnifi- 
cence, and the Comtesse de Teba became Empress 
of France. As in the touching biblical story of 
Esther, so in her case, grace and beauty procured a 
throne for the young Empress. 

A Spanish tradition has it that the pearls with 
which brides adorn themselves on their wedding- 
days become the symbol of tears which they must 
shed during their married life. The Empress, 
scorning the superstition, wore on that day a superb 
collar of incomparably beautiful pearls which almost 
concealed her satin corsage. Alas! the tradition 
was but too truly fulfilled ! This collar was sold, 
among her other jewels, by her Majesty after the 
war 

The little chateau of Villeneuve-l'Etang, which 
still stands in the park at Saint-Cloud, had been 
prepared for the reception of the imperial couple, 
and it was there, surrounded by a small circle of 
their nearest friends, that the Emperor and Em- 
press passed the first days of their union. Happi- 
ness loves solitude and oblivion. 



62 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

On the day following their nuptials, the 31st of 
January, in the brilliant wintry sunshine, the Em- 
peror and Empress, alone, in a phaeton driven by 
his Majesty himself, traversed the rime-decorated 
woods of Saint-Cloud and Yille-d'Avray to visit 
Versailles. The Empress desired to see Trianon 
and to recall on the spot that period in the life of 
the ill-fated Queen Marie- Antoinette when she was 
yet a happy young wife. 

By virtue of a mysterious affinity the Empress 
had always indulged an almost reverent worship for 
the royal martyr. By her order a collection was 
made at Trianon of all the articles which had be- 
longed to the Queen ; and it is due to her inter- 
est that the museum of souvenirs, which still exists, 
was formed. 

Knowing the Empress's fancy for everything 
connected with the memory of Marie- Antoinette, 
some one sent her from Austria a most singular 
portrait. It was a large, full-length picture of the 
dauphine before her marriage, when she was about 
fourteen years old. Notwithstanding her extreme 
youth, one could already divine a foreshadowing of 
the grace and beauty of the Queen. Her arm was 
raised, and she was pointing with a slender fore- 
finger to her neck, around which was tied, after the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 63 

fashion of the time, a narrow red ribbon which 
looked almost like a circle of blood. The childish 
face, the laughing, innocent expression, the seem- 
ingly prophetic gesture indicating the crimson line, 
gave a thrilling and tragic character to the portrait. 
The Emperor never ceased to love the Empress 
deeply and intensely. To the very close of his life, 
she and her son were alone the objects of his real 
affection and tenderness. Under all circumstances 
he was ever kind and loving to her, always address- 
ing her with the familiar " thou " and calling her 
by her diminutive, which he pronounced in a peculiar 
manner, suppressing the e mute of the first syllable, 
with an infinite sweetness of accent. In his manner 

4 

of looking at her, in the charm her beauty exercised 
upon him, in his familiar and caressing attitude 
toward her, one could discern that the lover still ex- 
isted by the side of the husband. 

Nevertheless, after eight years of wedded life, 
the Empress had already experienced more than 
one conjugal affront. The Emperor, yielding to his 
former easy indulgence in unworthy pleasures, and 
influenced by the laxity of morals in those by whom 
he was surrounded, did not always sufficiently con- 
sider her sensitiveness as queen and woman. In 
the very height of her youth and beauty she was 



64 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

made to taste the subtle poison of infidelity, which 
corrupts the most delicate and secret sensibilities of 
a woman's heart. 

After abandoning himself to these temporary 
distractions, one of which gained such unhappy no- 
toriety, the Emperor, who, like most men, attached 
no importance to these passing caprices, always 
seemed surprised that they had troubled his wife, 
since she alone occupied a really important and 
honored place in his life. 

A sister's friendship had supported the Empress 
during these trials. The Duchesse d'Albe, with her 
sweet, gentle disposition, was the sole comforter of 
her Majesty, whose ardent nature magnified tenfold 
the bitterness of her sufferings. She it was who 
helped her to rise above her troubles and to find 
courage to pardon their cause. 

After the death of the duchess the Empress 
•for the first time experienced the isolation of great- 
ness ; and she remained for a long time completely 
abandoned to grief and buried in her mourning, 
having no heart to throw off her affliction and re- 
sume her worldly duties. Even her health suffered, 
and the physicians strongly urged the Emperor to 
send her on a journey, hoping that change of scene 
might create an alteration in her unhappy condition. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 65 

The Empress therefore went to Scotland, where 
she remained several weeks. She returned im- 
proved in spirits and ready to resume the duties of 
life, but she had been irremediably assailed by mel- 
ancholy. Dating from this time a marked change 
took place in her Majesty's tastes and habits. It 
seemed that her youth had quite vanished, while 
the consciousness of her rank, hitherto scarcely dis- 
cernible, was now plainly visible on the ever-charm- 
ing features of the grief -matured woman. 



66 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 



IV. 

Immediately upon his marriage, the Emperor, 
imitating the example furnished by the court of 
Napoleon I., set about forming the household of the 
Empress. 

The Princesse d'Essling, daughter-in-law of 
Massena and daughter of General Debelle, was cre- 
ated grand mistress of the household. Pretty and 
refined in appearance, with an exceedingly lofty 
manner, though small in stature, the Princesse 
d'Essling occupied throughout the entire duration 
of the empire the highest position in her Majesty's 
service. Scrupulously particular regarding her dig- 
nity, she never went out unless she rode in state. 

About two o'clock in the afternoon of the 4th 
of September, as she was on her way to the Em- 
press, her ponderous coach, lined with white satin, 
was stopped by the crowd which had assembled 
about the Tuileries, and which forced her to turn 
back. She was the sort of woman to mount the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 67 

steps of the scaffold with dignity, like the ladies of 
Marie- Antoinette's court. 

She seemed, on first acquaintance, somewhat 
stiff and formal, but was in reality extremely kind- 
hearted and intelligent. After the war, being old 
and feeble, she withdrew almost entirely from so- 
cial activity ; but the number of friends who still 
clung to her and who remained her faithful adher- 
ents proved the high esteem in which she was held. 

The Duchesse de Bassano, wife of the Emperor's 
high chamberlain, received the title of lady of honor, 
and six ladies in waiting were selected from the 
friends to whom the Empress had been particu- 
larly attached before her marriage. 

In a large picture, painted by Winterhalter, the 
Empress is represented surrounded by these ladies. 
The group is marked by great natural dignity and 
elegance; and though the costumes appear to-day 
old-fashioned, yet they are not without grace, while 
the resemblance of the painted faces to the originals 
is exceedingly strong and lifelike. This picture was 
hung at Fontainebleau at the entrance of the Chi- 
nese salon. 

The ladies in waiting were the Yicomtesse 
Aguado, Marquise de las Marismas, whose exquisite 
beauty was enhanced by a grace and fascination 



68 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

wliich succeeding years have been powerless to 
efface. Hers was one of the most elegant honses in 
Paris, and her hotel in the Kue de l'Elysee was the 
rendezvous of the best French society. Yery se- 
lect entertainments were held there, and foreign 
princes visiting Paris coveted the privilege of fre- 
quenting her house, where everything was calcu- 
lated to please and attract. 

Since the war the Yicomtesse Aguado has lived 
in retirement. Her sincere attachment to the Em- 
press would not permit her to participate in the 
festivities of a changed administration ; in addition 
to which, heavy bereavements, of a nature so intense 
that nothing can ameliorate their profound melan- 
choly, have veiled in a cloud of sadness this happy 
life. 

The Yicomtesse Aguado was the mother of the 
Duchesse de Montmorency, a most lovely and truly 
accomplished young woman, who died at the early 
age of thirty, adored by every one who knew her. 
Still clinging to life, though exhausted by pro- 
longed suffering, she yet found courage to cheer 
the despondency of those who were plunged in 
despair at the prospect of losing her. 

The Comtesse de Montebello, nee de Yille- 
neuve Bargemont, was the granddaughter, on her 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 69 

mother's side, of the Duchesse de Vicence. Mme. 
de Montebello, one of the most agreeable women of 
the court, had been an intimate friend of the Du- 
chesse d'Albe, and the Empress was particularly 
attached to her. In 1860 her husband, General 
Montebello, was sent as ambassador to Rome, where 
they passed several years, and where their influence 
was most serviceable in conducting the delicate ne- 
gotiations consequent upon the Italian war. She 
made a delightful ambassadress, and was very popu- 
lar in Roman society. 

She had one son, M. Jean de Montebello, whom 
the Empress had been especially kind to ever since 
his childhood, inviting him to the court when his 
mother was on duty, and greatly interesting herself 
in his welfare. When still a child he composed 
very pretty verses expressive of a youthful and en- 
thusiastic devotion to the lovely Empress, who was 
so sweet a friend to him. Toward the close of the 
empire Mme. de Montebello fell seriously ill. For 
several years she lingered thus, finally passing 
away when still young, on the 7th of June, 1870, 
on the eve of the war. 

She was a devout Catholic. Going one day to 
visit her, I found with her a priest in the Domini- 
can habit, and after he had withdrawn I desired to 



70 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

know who the monk with the strong, expressive 
face might be. 

" He has," I said laughingly, " eyes as brilliant 
as coals of hell." 

She exclaimed, as if I had uttered a blasphemy. 

" He is a saint ! " she cried protestingly. " He 
leads a life of the strictest retirement and self -disci- 
pline. He preaches the "Word of God with an elo- 
quence that would touch the hearts of fallen angels. 
I knew him in Rome." 

It was Pere Hyacinthe. 

Until the close of her life the Empress bestowed 
upon Mme. de Montebello constant proofs of her 
affection and interest, and mourned her loss deeply, 
as that of a friend. 

The Comtesse de Lezay Marnesia, Baronne de 
Malaret, ranked among the first ladies in waiting of 
the Empress. She was a person of remarkable ele- 
gance and possessed a wonderfully beautiful figure. 
She passed but little time in her own house, and 
generally accompanied her husband, who belonged 
to the diplomatic ranks. I never saw her at court. 

Besides these, there was the Marquise de La- 
tour-Maubourg, daughter of the Due de Trevise. 
Her husband was attached to the Emperor's hunt, 
and had the figure and face of a knight of the olden 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 71 

time. Theirs was a most united household, and 
Mrae. de Maubourg, who was a most interesting and 
amiable woman, fairly adored her husband. People 
teased them somewhat about their perpetual honey- 
moon. 

" What would you do," I asked her one day, " if 
you found Maubourg deceiving you \ " 

" I should be so astonished," she replied, " that 
I should die of sheer surprise." 

She devoted the most infinite care and tender- 
ness to the education and rearing of their two chil- 
dren — a boy and a girl. Independent, wealthy, and 
well-born, their lives were, for a long period, ex- 
empt from the slightest sorrow or pain. One day 
when she and I were on duty together at the Tuile- 
ries, as we were mounting the staircase, a dispatch 
was handed her. It announced that her father, the 
Due de Trevise, whom she had but recently left in 
perfect health, had been stricken with the small- 
pox. 

" It is the first trouble of my life," she said to 
me, greatly moved. " God knows what may now 
come to me ! " 

The Due de Trevise died a few days later at 
Sceaux, in the ancient dwelling of the Duchesse de 
Maine, which he had undertaken to restore. Two 



72 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

weeks after the Duchesse de Trevise died also, 
having caught the disease in taking care of her 
husband. 

Mme. de Maubourg was still in mourning when 
the war broke out. Her son — twenty years of age, 
and as handsome as his father— a lad full of prom- 
ise for the future, enlisted with the militia of the 
Haute-Loire, where they owned large estates. He 
fell in combat, and his dead body was sent home 
to his mother. A lovely daughter still remained 
to her. She gave her in marriage to Comte Pierre 
de Kergolay, and less than a year after the poor 
girl died in childbirth. 

M. de Latour-Maubourg, in consequence of such 
a succession of sorrows, fell into a sad condition of 
melancholy, which lasted many years. Misfortune 
had entirely broken him down. His brave wife 
found sufficient courage to sustain and comfort him, 
devoting herself wholly to his care with a wonder- 
ful unselfishness and tenderness. He has lately 
passed away. The Marquise is a woman of great 
piety, and it is said that she will shortly enter a 
convent. 

The sixth lady in waiting was the Baronne de 
Pierres, whose husband was grand equerry to the 
Empress. She was the finest horsewoman in 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 73 

France, and yet the most timid person I ever 
knew; the least trifle terrified her. She had been 
very pretty and was exceedingly sweet and amiable. 

The ordinary daily duties at the palace were ex- 
clusively performed by the ladies in waiting. The 
grand mistress of the household and the lady of 
honor only officiated on special occasions of cere- 
mony, such as audiences, presentations, etc. 

The Princesse d'Essling regulated the duties for 
each week. Later, the number of ladies in waiting 
in the Empress's suite was considerably increased, 
numbering twelve, in fact. The Empress chose 
first Ime. de Sancy de Parabere, nee Lesfevre- 
Desnouettes, a person of eminent mental culture, 
elevated character, and the most agreeable disposi- 
tion. Long after her youth had departed she pre- 
served a wonderful charm of countenance. The 
Empress felt for her the strong attachment and ad- 
miration which a woman of such superior distinc- 
tion merited. The next lady selected to augment 
the service was the Comtesse de la Bedoyere, a most 
witty woman and superb musician, who had all the 
brilliancy and beauty of the women of the time of 
Louis XI Y. She became a widow in 1869, and 
subsequently married the Prince de la Moskowa. 
She, as well as her sister, was Comtesse de la Poeze 



74: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

and daughter of the Marquise de Laroche-Lambert, 
who was ambassadress to Berlin. These two 
women, both having been partially brought up in 
foreign countries, were perfectly at home in the at- 
mosphere of courts. Mme. de Sancy was the dis- 
tinguished wife of the brilliant member of the In- 
stitut. She now lives in retirement, devoting her- 
self to works of charity and existing in the holy 
shadows of the past. 

Then there was the Comtesse de Eayneval, who 
never married. She became canoness of a religious 
order in Bavaria, and preserved for many years a 
statuesque style of beauty. It was she who posed 
as model for the Muse whom one sees crowning 
Cherubini in Ingres's celebrated picture. 

The Comtesse de Lourmel, widow of the general 
who fell in the Crimea, was a very tiny person, 
without beauty but not without pretensions, who 
was completely controlled by provincial prejudices. 
She was possessed of a ferocious jealousy of all 
things concerning the Empress, and would have 
been slain in defense of her prerogatives. The 
Empress, pitying her lonely condition — for she had 
no children, little wealth, and few friends — treated 
her with a rather unusual degree of familiarity. 
The poor little countess always dreamed of filling 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 75 

the role of favorite to her Majesty, a role far be- 
yond her slender capabilities. We were greatly 
surprised at seeing her arrive at the Tuileries one 
day wearing a set of extraordinarily beautiful eme- 
ralds surrounded by small diamonds. She invented 
some fable of family inheritance to account for this 
unwonted magnificence, but it was always suspected 
that the emeralds never saw Peru, which won for 
Mme. de Lourmel the malicious nickname of the 
" lady of the emeralds," with the last word accented 
after her own fashion when she mentioned her 
gems. This innocent deceit was the outcome of an 
immense fund of vanity which it took but little to 
irritate. The Comtesse de Lourmel's end was a sad 
one — her weak little brain gave way, and we heard 
at last that she had lost her reason. She died about 
1868. 

The Baronne de Yiry-Cohendier, of a very old 
Savoy family, was made lady in waiting in 1860, 
just about the time of the annexation. She was a 
young woman of pleasing countenance, with very 
fine dark-brown eyes. The Marechal Vaillant, who 
greatly admired her, always greeted her by saying : 

" Madame, you remind me of the ox-eyed 
Juno." 

This Homeric compliment was but partially 



76 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

flattering to the pretty baroness. Pier husband, M. 
Viry-Cohendier, was a pale young man, as cold and 
reserved as she was lively and animated ; still she 
was terribly jealous of him. He used to wander 
sadly through the entertainments at the court, join- 
ing in no gayety and mingling with no one, care- 
fully watched by his amiable wife, who was a fa- 
natic on the subject of her native country, and was 
extremely sensitive regarding anything connected 
with Savoy. 

Chambery gauze, the somewhat old-fashioned 
product of the Savoyan industries, occupied a con- 
siderable place in her wardrobe, but she never suc- 
ceeded in creating the demand for it which she de- 
sired to establish. However, every year, in order 
to please her, the Empress would send for several 
pieces which she distributed about her. After the 
war, M. and Mme. de Yiry returned to their old 
chateau in Savoy, whence they seldom emerge. 

Mme. Feray-d'Isly, the second daughter of 
Marechal Bugeaud, was also, for a short time, lady 
in waiting ; but it appeared that her humor did not 
well accord with the deference due a sovereign. 
She was constantly recalling the time when Mare- 
chal Bugeaud, her father, was governor-general of 
Algeria, and when it w r as for her carriage that a 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 77 

salute was sounded when she was pleased to venture 
out from the government palace. She continually 
yielded to vain regrets, until it was finally hinted to 
her that it was scarcely desirable that she should re- 
tain a position which was so unpleasant to her. I 
do not think she ever returned to the Tuileries, 
where, however, her husband, General Feray, who 
was warmly respected by the Emperor, was always 
cordially received. 

At the time of my arrival at the Tuileries the 
Comtesse de Lezay-Marnesia, who had long been an 
invalid and unfitted for duty, begged the Empress's 
permission to retire. She remained honorary lady 
in waiting, and her place was not for some time re- 
filled, although many women coveted the succession. 
Many times the Empress caused me to reply, in an- 
swer to requests for it, that the place was already 
promised. 

When my marriage was arranged the Empress 
was good enough to tell me that, desiring to keep 
me near her, she was reserving the situation for me. 
And indeed, by a notice inserted in the " Moniteur " 
of April 22, 1866, it was made public that I had 
been appointed lady in waiting to the Empress on 
the day of my marriage. 

Two of us were on duty at a time. The ladies 



78 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

in waiting did not reside at the Tuileries. During 
our week of service a great court equipage came 
daily to conduct us thither. The coachman to whom 
this duty was assigned, and who was called Pinson, 
filled his place with a gravity which nothing could 
overcome. Once having taken up his freight, he 
set off at a solemn trot, and, notwithstanding what 
might be our hurry or impatience, we never could 
induce him to increase his speed in the slightest. 

The Emperor, while reviewing his stables one 
day, noticed his important bearing and excellent 
appearance. 

" To what service are you attached % " he in- 
quired. 

" I am Pinson, the ladies' coachman, sire," was 
the reply, with a consequential air which greatly 
amused his Majesty. 

We have often since then been wrongfully ac- 
cused of making a martyr of him. Pinson consid- 
ered himself the guardian of our dignity in the 
public sight ; he drove us according to his own ideas 
of decorum, and in all Paris there did not exist a 
greater slave to propriety than he. 

Every Sunday the service was changed. At 
half -past eleven the new service and all the grand 
dignitaries of the crown assembled in the Salon du 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. ?9 

Premier Consul. The Emperor, Empress, and 
Prince Imperial proceeded thither after their break- 
fast and greeted the company, after which the 
procession formed and proceeded to mass in the 
chapel of the Tnileries, traversing the Salle des 
Marechaux, the Galerie de la JPaix, and a gal- 
lery called Des Travees which opened from the 
chapel. 

It was there that I saw regularly Monseigneur 
Darboy, the Archbishop of Paris and Grand Al- 
moner to the Emperor, whose terrible death nnder 
the Commune attaches a tragic importance to his 
memory. Monseigneur Darboy, who showed an 
apostolic eloquence in his preaching, was, at other 
times, a man of silent benevolence. He was thin 
and short, with a delicate face and long features. 
His gray hair fell to his shoulders. He was modest 
>and almost timid in appearance ; and his expression 
was one of sadness, even of melancholy, indeed. 

Among the other chief officers of the crown was 
Marechal Vaillant, minister of the Emperor's house- 
hold. He was one of the men who trembled or pre- 
tended to tremble in the Emperor's presence ; nev- 
ertheless, he was not a timid person. He was a pas- 
sionate horticulturist ; he adored flowers, and prided 
himself upon his knowledge of agriculture, which he 



80 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

had acquired from the most learned writings. He 
thought that he had discovered a means of extermi- 
nating the grub which is the fatal enemy to the cult- 
ure of beet-root. According to his theory, one should 
largely cultivate the moles, who, it appears^ are very 
fond of this horrible insect. He had collected in a 
boxful of earth a quantity of the worms and had 
put a mole into it also ; the next day every worm 
had disappeared. This result appeared to him a 
conclusive argument, and he proposed applying the 
system to farms. He forgot, able theorist though 
he was, that the experience made upon one of his 
window-sills in the Louvre might not be applicable 
to huge fields, and that the moles, in multiplying, 
might become a far greater pest than the grubs 
themselves. 

The marshal, though very amiable at the 
court, had the reputation of being far different in 
his official capacity, and rather prided himself upon 
his brusquerie and severity. The wife of a colonel, 
having a request to make, was once received by 
him with scant courtesy until he learned that she 
was a person of consequence and vastly clever, 
when he greatly modified his demeanor, saying 
deprecatingly, as she rose to take leave, " You must 
consider me a boar, madame " 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 81 

To which she replied naively, " Oh no, monsieur, 
not quite as savage as that." 

The marechal thought the thrust a good one, and 
enjoyed repeating it at his own expense. lie had 
much refinement, however, beneath an exterior 
whose roughness was rather affected than real. 

The high chamberlain, the Due de Bassano, re- 
sided at the Tuileries. He assisted every Sunday 
at mass. !N"o one could have fulfilled with greater 
devotion, distinction, and kindness the delicate 
duties of his position. All who met him left his 
presence, even if unsuccessful in their missions, 
with a feeling of satisfaction ; no one better under- 
stood conciliating the friends of the Emperor. 
With his lordly manner, his exquisite courtesy, his 
unfailing patience and desire to oblige, he was the 
most perfect intermediary who could have been se- 
lected to represent such a sovereign as Napoleon 
III. He often filled the Emperor's place in receiv- 
ing audiences or attending state ceremonies. 

The Due de Bassano, now at a very advanced 
age, has consecrated his life entirely to the Em- 
press's service. He lives in England, and scarcely 
ever leaves her neighborhood, surrounding her with 
a deference and respectful attention which are truly 
touching, watching carefully over her interests in 



82 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

every way, and ever on the alert to spare her suffer- 
ing and assuage her grief. By means of his watch- 
ful devotion, his noble self-sacrifice, and unobtrusive 
assiduity, he maintains around her in the solitude of 
Chiselhurst or Farnborough as much as possible of 
the prestige of royal rank. His attachment to the 
imperial family, his stainless and dignified character, 
his rare loyalty and devotion recall the noblest ex- 
amples of our history. His is a character worthy of 
the deepest veneration. Such men as he awaken 
the love of all humanity. 

The Duchesse de Bassano, nee d'Hoogworth, of 
Belgian origin, lady of honor to the Empress, was 
the personification of loveliness. She was a worthy 
companion of such a husband. They had a charm- 
ing family, consisting of three children — a son and 
two daughters. 

The daughters were most talented young wom- 
en, and it was impossible to find in the brilliant cir- 
cles in which they moved two sisters who were 
their equals. Ever united and sympathetic, pretty 
and unaffected, they dispersed about them a radi- 
ance of youth heightened by the attractiveness of a 
model education. The eldest married her cousin, 
Baron d'Hoogworth, and lives in Belgium, where 
she is lady in waiting to Queen Henrietta. The 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 83 

second is the Marquise d'Espeuilles, wife of the 
brilliant officer of ordnance to the Emperor, who 
was later aide-de-camp to the Prince Imperial. 

It was the Due de Bassano who on the 19th of 
June, 1879, took upon himself the sad and terrible 
duty of acquainting the Empress with the dread 
news of her son's death. Since the preceding even- 
ing the report had been circulated in London. 

At eight o'clock on the morning of the 19 th 
Lord Sydney, high chamberlain of the Queen, ar- 
rived, having been dispatched by her Majesty as 
bearer of the terrible tidings. He asked for the 
Due de Bassano, and the latter, who loved the 
prince devotedly, was completely prostrated with 
sorrow upon learning his errand. Lord Sydney 
urged him to prepare the Empress. 

" Never," replied the duke. " My lips will 
never find courage to frame the words." 

" But only consider," insisted Lord Sydney, 
" that the Empress may learn the sad truth at any 
moment from a newspaper or from chattering 
tongues." 

The duke hesitated no longer. The Empress, 
surprised at seeing him present himself at such 
an unusually early hour, caused him to be at once 
admitted. 



84 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

" You have tidings from Zululand % " she asked, 
before he could speak. 

" Yes, madame, and they are not happy ones." 

"Louis is ill? Well, my dear duke, let us set 
out at once to find and take care of him." 

" There has been a battle," said the duke, 
gravely. 

" He is wounded % " 

The duke bowed. 

" We must go at once, to-day. We can easily 
procure a vessel in London to convey us to Suez. 
There we shall have further advices. People are 
going every day." And summoning her women, 
the Empress gave them hurried orders to prepare at 
once for departure. " Is the wound serious ? " she 
then demanded, scarcely daring to question or 
even look at the duke, who still waited at the 
door. 

Suddenly she approached and looked at him fix- 
edly, in a very agony of apprehension ; the tears 
were rolling down his cheeks. The Empress ut- 
tered a terrible cry — she comprehended the horrible 
truth. 

During the whole of that sad day the Empress 
sank from one swoon into another. Her life was 
considered in danger, and the Abbe Goddard, cure 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 85 

of the Church of Saint Mary at Chiselhurst, was 
summoned to her assistance. 

" I can not even die," cried the Empress, as she 
came to herself, " and the good God will let me 
live to be a hundred." 

Such griefs can not be recounted. 

The Marquis de Bassano, the duke's son, fre- 
quently supplied his father's place in her Majesty's 
service. He accompanied her on the journey which 
she made to Zululand after the prince's death, for 
the purpose of collecting herself all the painful de- 
tails of his lamentable experience, in order that no 
doubt might ever be raised concerning the manner 
in which the tragic catastrophe was accomplished — 
an actual Calvary in which the suffering mother was 
sustained and supported by the will of the sov- 
ereign. 

On arriving at the deserted place where all that 
she loved on earth had met with such a dreadful 
fate, Nature made a supreme revolt against the bur- 
den laid upon her, and the Empress fainted on the 
very spot where, in the midst of a desolate and bar- 
barous solitude, her child had been done to death. 

The young Marquis de Bassano proffered her the 
only consolation which can be applied to such awful 
affliction. With the utmost delicacy of devotion 



86 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

and intuitive sympathy, he aided the stricken moth- 
er in fulfilling this superhuman task. 

Besides the persons attached to the court, mass 
at the Tuileries was attended by a vast number of 
outsiders. Every one who assisted was summoned 
by invitation. The side galleries were thrown open, 
and the guests sat there and in the background of 
the chapel. The Emperor and Empress, surrounded 
by their suite, occupied a sort of tribune opposite 
the altar, and the ladies in waiting sat in the left 
gallery. The music was excellent, the mass being 
chanted by fine soloists and a well-trained choir. 
The office was most solemnly conducted. 

Monseigneur Tirmache, Bishop of Adras, gener- 
ally officiated. He was the former cure of Ham, of 
whom the Emperor had preserved such favorable 
recollections that he had been anxious to secure him 
for the imperial chapel. After the Emperor's es- 
cape he begged Monseigneur Tirmache to keep, in 
memory of him, the sacred vessels which had come 
from the chapel of Queen Hortense and which had 
been used during the celebrations of mass at which 
the Emperor regularly assisted during his captivity. 
Monseigneur Tirmache was a most worthy and un- 
assuming old man. Toward the close of his life he 
was bitten by what was supposed to be a mad dog. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 87 

This circumstance made a most painful impression 
upon him, and he died in 1870 after the close of the 
war. 

A numerous clergy was attached to the chapel. 
The Abbe Laisne bore the title of cure-vicaire. 
The chapel was in the parish of Saint- Germ ain- 
l'Auxerrois, notwithstanding which it possessed 
special registers of its own in which were inscribed 
all the religious ceremonies which took place there ; 
such as the baptism of those children to whom the 
Emperor and Empress stood sponsors, and the 
marriages at which their Majesties assisted — the 
latter being of exceedingly rare occurrence. It was 
here that I was married, the Emperor and Empress 
having desired to do me this honor. 

The Abbe Laisne chanced to be in the chapel 
on the 4th of September, when the Tuileries were 
invaded, and was fortunate enough to secure the 
registers containing the marriage of the Emperor 
and Empress and the certificate of baptism of the 
Prince Imperial, thus preserving these important 
records from destruction. He is still a firm, vigor- 
ous old man, and presides at all the religious cere- 
monials in which the imperial society takes part. 
His sympathetic countenance is thoroughly familiar 
to all who have the gift of memory. He it is who 



88 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

celebrates the anniversary masses, and of whom the 
last prayers are requested for the former members 
of the Emperor's household. His services are, 
alas ! only too frequently called into requisition, for 
the gaps grow daily wider in that once brilliant circle. 

After mass, to which the Emperor always wore 
his general's uniform, it was his custom to hold a 
reception of all the officers above the grade of lieu- 
tenant-colonel. They were permitted to converse 
freely and unceremoniously, the Emperor taking a 
great pleasure in these reunions, being able to call 
nearly all the officers by name, and interesting him- 
self in their welfare and conditions with ready and 
unfailing kindness. 

On one occasion a newly appointed colonel pre- 
sented himself, and the Emperor, seeing him there 
for the first time, asked his name. 

" Paillard," replied the colonel. 

" You possess a fine name," remarked the Em- 
peror, misunderstanding the officer's pronunciation, 
"that of the chevalier 'sans jpeur et sans re- 
jyroche? " 

"Pardon, sire, it is Paillard," corrected the colo- 
nel. 

"Ah! well," said his Majesty, "that is a fine 
name also." 



COVET OF TEE TUILERIES. 89 

The chapel of the Tuileries, unimposing in char- 
acter, was most simply decorated. Two very re- 
markable pieces of Gobelin tapestry ornamented 
the wall on each side of the altar. They repre- 
sented the Flight into Egypt and the Visitation. 
Daily during Lent, and on every Sunday, a sermon 
was preached, and there we had an opportunity of 
hearing all the most celebrated sacred orators of the 
day. 

The Abbe Deguerry, the venerable cure of the 
Madeleine, was among the last to preach there. 
The Abbe Bauer, of unhappy memory, also offici- 
ated for a season. He came from Italy and, 
strongly recommended by the court of Rome as a 
neophyte of unequaled ardor and sanctity, was pre- 
ceded by a reputation for eloquence which caused 
him to be appointed conductor to their Majesties 
of the Lenten services of 1866. 

He had left at Yienna and Madrid, where he 
had made his debut in the sacred rostrum, impres- 
sions which, joined to the somewhat romantic and 
mysterious story of his conversion to Catholicism, 
enveloped his name and person with a special inter- 
est, and aroused a marked feeling of curiosity re- 
garding him. On the day of his first presentation 
at court by the venerable Archbishop of Paris, he 



90 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

appeared pale and ascetic, as if ravaged by the 
austerities of a life of penitence, but with an air of 
youth and modesty about him that prepossessed 
one strongly in his favor. Although he was then 
nearly forty, he looked much younger, owing to his 
short, slight figure. 

On seeing him, one was forcibly reminded of 
one of Alexandre Dumas's guardsmen; he looked 
like a sort of Aramis, without the latter's grace and 
distinction. His long, jet-black hair, his strongly 
accentuated features, and his somber, deep-set eyes, 
made up a most extraordinary countenance ; and in 
hearing him speak one's favorable impressions were 
but increased. His scholarly and well-chosen lan- 
guage was marked by a touching and impressive 
fervor ; a vigorous delivery, and the slight German 
accent which he still retained, gave weight and va- 
riety to his words, and impressed them forcibly 
upon his hearers' minds, which were prepared to 
receive them by the intense atmosphere of faith 
which emanated from him. He was well equipped 
with the happiest similes and readiest command of 
speech — with all the qualities, in fact, calculated to 
captivate the attention of the select audience which 
he addressed. 

Many ladies of the court whose religious char- 



COURT OF THE TUILEEIES. 91 

acter was, perhaps, insufficiently developed to per- 
mit them to dissociate themselves from external 
influences, became foolishly infatuated with the 
young preacher, and went about wildly extolling 
his talent and singing his praises with the exag- 
geration in which such persons indulge. He be- 
came the confessor of these ladies, the recipient of 
their feeble confidences; and the little apartment 
where he lodged at Cannes soon became thronged 
with the fashionable women of Paris, eager to seek 
from him religious advice and consolation. 

Apparently, the head of Abbe Eauer was not 
sufficiently steady to prevent his falling into these 
man-traps. When, in the following year, he reap- 
peared in the chapel — where, by the way, he never 
had an official title — he was almost ridiculous. It 
was said that he had his cassocks made by the court 
tailor, but I think the report arose from his theatri- 
cal manner of wearing them. He was completely 
inundated with opoponax ; he addressed women 
with the familiarity of a gallant, drawing up his 
small figure to its most imposing height, and en- 
deavoring to play the courtier prelate of the ancient 
regime in a most absurd manner. 

The admiration which the Empress had ac- 
corded him on his first appearance, and the sym- 



92 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

pathy with which she had at first regarded him, suf- 
fered a complete revulsion at sight of such a des- 
picable transformation. Above everything her 
Majesty detested vulgarity and ostentation. Soon 
a warning of the imperial displeasure was con- 
veyed to the abbe, but, as he was not a man to 
take a hint and retire with dignity, or profit by a 
marked coldness of attitude, he engaged in a sort 
of struggle in which he had the advantage of au- 
dacity. 

There was no apparently valid reason for offi- 
cially banishing him, and he therefore had the ad- 
dress to avail himself of the hesitation which their 
Majesties always showed in making a public mani- 
festation of their displeasure. 

When the court was at Biarritz in 1867, the 
Abbe Bauer followed it thither and presented him- 
self to pay his respects at the Yilla Eugenie. It 
was the custom to ask every one who passed 
through Biarritz, and who had been presented at 
court, to breakfast. The Abbe Bauer was invited 
like every one else, and it chanced that on the same 
day the Empress had planned a little sailing excur- 
sion in a small steam advice boat, called Le Faon, 
which remained at the Emperor's orders while he 
was at Biarritz. The Abbe Bauer, overhearing 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 93 

mention made of this excursion, expressed his de- 
sire to see the coast in such a manner that it was im- 
possible to avoid asking him to join the expedition. 

The Emperor cared little for sailing, besides 
which he was on that day receiving several minis- 
ters, M. Rouher among others ; therefore he did 
not accompany the Empress, who embarked with the 
Prince Imperial, Admiral Jurien de la Graviere, 
her two young nieces — daughters of the Duchesse 
d'Albe, who were then living with her — Mile. 
Marion, maid of honor, Doctor Corvisart, and my- 
self, who unfortunately was obliged to disappear 
almost immediately on account of seasickness. 

The first part of the programme passed off well, 
and we went as far as Saint-Sebastien, but, as the 
wind had suddenly risen and the sea become very 
rough, the captain of Le Faon declared that we 
could not land at the port of Vieux, and that we 
must go on to Saint-Jean-de-Luz. "We arrived at 
the latter place at a later hour than we anticipated, 
and night was already setting in. 

Saint- Jean-de-Luz is a little fishing port which 
only accommodates boats of a light draught. A 
long, narrow jetty separates two bays which afford a 
place of refuge on this abrupt shore ; but the coast 
bristles with rocks, and the boat could not approach 



94: RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 

near enough to land us. It therefore became neces- 
sary to use the small cutters belonging to the ad- 
vice boat. The roughness of the sea had increased 
my discomfort, and the younger of the Empress's 
nieces, Mile. Louise d'Albe, was equally ill. We 
were placed, half-conscious, in the little cutter and 
rowed by the sailors to land. 

The imperial boat had been observed by the in- 
habitants, who all turned out armed with lanterns 
to illuminate the pier and point out the channel. 
We disembarked easily, and remained on the pier to 
await the arrival of the Empress's boat, which was 
behind ours. Some time passed, and we saw no 
sign of it. "We began to grow very anxious. "What 
could have happened to it % At last Doctor Corvi- 
sart, making his way through the crowd, ap- 
proached us. 

" Come," he said. " The Empress has just es- 
caped a most terrible peril. They are saved, but 
have had an awful and alarming experience." 

And, indeed, through an error of the pilot who 
guided the boat which held the Empress and Prince 
Imperial, Admiral Jurien, the captain of La Faon, 
Abbe Bauer, and M. Corvisart, instead of keeping 
the direction which we had taken and so gaining 
the channel, had ventured into the water on the 



COURT OF TEE TUILEEIES. 95 

other side of the jetty, where the coast was seamed 
with danger, and where the boat, driven by the 
wind, had struck against one of the largest rocks 
which the waves bathed. The darkness was so in- 
tense that it was impossible to distinguish how far 
they were from shore. The sailors helped the Em- 
press out of the boat and assisted her in maintaining 
a precarious footing on the rock and in withstand- 
ing the force of the waves which dashed against it. 
The Empress held her son in her arms. 

" Do not be afraid, Louis," she said to him, reas- 
suringly. 

" I am not, mamma," returned the boy ; " I have 
not forgotten that my name is Napoleon." The 
prince was then eleven. 

When all the passengers were in comparative 
safety on the rock, one of the sailors, who was an 
excellent swimmer, declared his ability to swim 
to the shore for help, and dashed into the water. 
He found that it was shallow enough to permit him 
to stand erect, and immediately the rest of the men, 
imitating his example, jumped into the sea and, 
forming a chain, passed the Empress, the Prince 
Imperial, and the other passengers safely to land. 
When it came to the Abbe Bauer's turn no one 
would help him. 



96 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

"If we had not had him on board," said the 
sailors to each other, " we should not have met 
with an accident." 

There is indeed a superstition among sailors 
that any excursion in which a priest takes part is 
sure to come to a fatal termination. 

The report of the episode which had happened 
to us quickly spread. The population of Saint- 
Jean-de-Luz soon dispersed from the pier, and the 
Empress and Prince Imperial, who were both wet 
to the skin, were promptly conducted to the town. 
The prince was dressed hastily in some borrowed 
garments, but the Empress, fearing that the Em- 
peror would become anxious at not seeing her re- 
turn, immediately set off in one ■ of the vehicles 
which awaited her, without even delaying to change 
her soaked clothing. 

The Emperor and his ministers were indeed in a 
state of the liveliest inquietude, and after hearing 
an account of the frightful catastrophe his Majesty 
swore that never again would he permit these sail- 
ing parties. This one had a most unhappy epi- 
logue — the unfortunate pilot who had conducted it 
was drowned, and the next day his mutilated body 
was thrown up by the tide on the very part of 
the beach where his own little dwelling— whose 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 97 

tiny light had ever served him as a beacon — 
stood. 

Some days later the Emperor visited the scene 
of the disaster. The tide was low, and the immense 
rock which had wrecked the Empress's boat was 
entirely exposed. It was a huge affair ; a great iso- 
lated cube on which twelve or fifteen persons could 
have been easily accommodated, had the sea per- 
mitted. The Emperor ordered the construction of 
a light-house, designed to guide boats entering the 
harbor at night, which accounts for the beacon 
which to-day burns on the pier of Saint-Jean-de- 
Luz. 



98 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 



V. 



Ok the 26th of February, 1864, I lost my 
father, who was then a colonel at Cherbourg. He 
was still young, full of life and spirits, and I adored 
him. My mother and I were left without fortune, 
which fact the Empress heard of through Doctor 
Conneau, who was one of our friends. She had 
never forgotten me, and at once took a lively inter- 
est in our unfortunate situation. 

Shortly after, my mother received a call from 
Admiral Charles Duperre, then officer of ordnance 
to the Emperor. He had been sent by the Empress 
as bearer of an offer to take me into her service and 
assume the charge of my future. My mother hesi- 
tated, her love and solicitude for me causing her to 
apprehend that the acceptance of the kind proposi- 
tion with which her Majesty had honored me 
might have dangerous results. 

Having been reared in Brittany, I knew no one 
at the brilliant court, and my mother was afraid lest 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 99 

I should find such a novel position bristling with 
difficulties. At this very time I had under consid- 
eration the offer of a wealthy alliance, and I was 
urged to accept it. But my heart was not enlisted 
in the matter, and I could not bring myself to 
consent. 

I was deeply moved by the interest the Empress 
testified in me, and, influenced by the strong fascina- 
tion she exerted over my imagination, I dreamed of 
consecrating my life to her. 

My mother procured an audience with the Em- 
press, and talked freely with her regarding her per- 
plexities. Her Majesty explained fully what 
would be required of me and what would be the 
conditions of my life in her service. She com- 
pletely reassured my mother, and we therefore 
gratefully accepted the destiny offered me. 

The Empress expressed a desire that I should 
never go out without her. I was never to leave 
her, was to accompany her in all her travels, and 
live her life exclusively. My mother and all the 
ladies of my family and acquaintance were at lib- 
erty to come and see me at the Tuileries, but I was 
allowed to receive no other visits. This established 
rule left me free to devote myself to my new du- 
ties, and besides it was the only proper condition 



100 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

under which I, a young girl, could accept the situ- 
ation. 

The choice of a title for me was a most per- 
plexing one. There had never been any young 
ladies of honor at the court since the time of Louis 
XIV., and the Empress had already in her service 
an old lady, the Comtesse de Wagner de Pons, who 
most honorably filled the place of reader. Her 
Majesty hesitated to confer the same title upon a 
young person for fear of wounding the old lady, 
but, as no better solution of the difficulty was forth- 
coming, I was appointed second reader to her 
Majesty. 

Throughout all time, trifling events at court 
have assumed a vast importance ; petty rivalries 
and jealousies become magnified into huge affairs. 
Sovereigns generally better understand those who 
serve them than these understand themselves. The 
impulsive way in which the Empress had sum- 
moned me to her service might have given great 
umbrage to many ; but the secret was well guarded, 
very few persons having been confided in, and no 
one knew of my new position until I arrived at the 
Tuileries. 

It had been necessary to bestow some thought 
and attention on my modest trousseau, but the Em- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 101 

press had kindly foreseen what would be my per- 
plexity in this matter, and had sent me by Mme. 
Pollet, her treasurer, several very simple toilets, 
made in the most perfect taste. 

At last, on the 24th of April, 1864, I arrived at 
the Tuileries, accompanied by my mother. We 
were both deeply moved, for we had always lived 
together in the most perfect union of tastes and 
sympathy, accustomed to share all our thoughts in 
common. We had never been separated, and my 
mother, in the midst of all the exigencies and inter- 
ruptions of military life, had taken the sole charge 
of my education. I had not a thought or memory 
unshared by her. Henceforth we should live apart, 
and my mother was filled with apprehension and 
solicitude ; as for myself, I was full of confidence 
in the support I felt I should derive from the Em- 
press. 

On arriving we were introduced into a salon 
on the first floor, near the Pavilion de Flore, and 
almost immediately we were told that the Empress 
awaited us. It was half-past twelve, and their 
Majesties had just finished breakfast. Having 
mounted one flight, we were ushered across the 
grand Galerie de Diane, and into the salon of 
Louis XIV., which was used as a breakfast-room. 



102 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Here the Prince Imperial was finishing his repast 
alone, Miss Shaw, his English governess, standing 
at a little distance from him. 

At this time he was a beautiful child of eight, 
with a frank, open countenance, fair skin, pretty 
brown curls, and his mother's large blue eyes. He 
was talking gayly in English as we entered, but as 
his glance fell upon us his face assumed the grave 
expression which was even then a characteristic of 
his young countenance, and rising of his own ac- 
cord he saluted us courteously, with a charming 
mixture of dignity and childishness in his manner. 

"We continued to traverse many grand apart- 
ments until we reached the Salon cPApollon, upon 
which opened the private rooms of the Empress. 
The footman who conducted us threw open a large 
glass door, and, having motioned us into a smaller 
and very elegantly decorated salon opening upon the 
garden, left us. A few moments later an usher 
crossed the room and tapped softly on a door which 
he opened ; then, after saying a few words in a low, 
respectful tone, he withdrew. Almost immediately 
the Empress appeared. 

She wore a simple black silk dress draped above 
a red cloth petticoat, with a bodice of the same 
cloth, clasped about the waist with a black belt fast- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 103 

ened by a gold buckle which formed a monogram 
containing all the letters of her name. The Em- 
press's beauty was of a graver character than for- 
merly, though it still retained its exquisite purity 
of feature, and the shade of melancholy which 
tinged her countenance only made its fairness more 
interesting. Her always superb figure had grown 
fuller, and on her exceedingly slender hands she 
wore no jewel save the five gold rings on the fourth 
finger of the left one, each of which commemo- 
rated some great event in her life. 

Her Majesty embraced me affectionately, saying 
she was very glad to have me with her, and then 
kindly set about comforting my mother, who could 
not control her emotion. 

"I only require one thing of you," she said to 
me, " which is that you tell me freely everything 
which may trouble or annoy you, just as you would 
tell your own mother. I trust that you will be 
happy with me, and, as you already please me 
greatly, all will, I am sure, go smoothly." 

During this conversation the door remained 
open, and we could hear loud bursts of laughter 
and the fresh tones of a childish voice mingling 
with graver accents ; a light odor of cigarettes filled 
the room, and I divined that the Emperor and 



104 RECOLLECTION'S OF TEE 

Prince Imperial were in the next apartment. After 
a quarter of an hour's conversation, the Empress 
said to me : 

" Go, now, and put your affairs in order ; I will 
soon send for you. If you need anything, ask 
Mine. Pollet for it." 

My mother took leave of her Majesty, and we 
returned through the apartments that we had al- 
ready traversed in coming thither. The footman 
awaited us in the Galerie de Diane, and conducted 
us up an inner staircase, of no particular impor- 
tance, at the top of which stood an officer of the 
guard in uniform, armed to the teeth, and imme- 
diately afterward I found myself in my new lodg- 
ings. 

They were situated directly above the apart- 
ments of the Empress, and their oval windows 
opened upon a flat roof. They had formerly be- 
longed to one of the Orleans princesses. They con- 
sisted of an antechamber, lighted from the roof, 
which gave access to a most comfortable sitting- 
room, a spacious chamber with dressing-room at- 
tached, and a second chamber for the accommoda- 
tion of my maid. 

Mme. Pollet awaited us. She was quite a 
young Spaniard, and had been in her Majesty's serv- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 105 

ice before her marriage. She never left her. She 
consulted me as to the selection of a maid, as if she 
considered it a most important question, and offered 
me the services of a young woman whose two sis- 
ters were in her Majesty's employ, and who was 
desirous of being near them. I gladly secured her, 
and she proved to be a girl of most excellent quali- 
ties and disposition, named Franceline Merlin. She 
has been in my service ever since, and has never 
failed in proving her devotion and attachment to 
me. 

About three o'clock a footman came to inform 
me that the Empress was ready to go out and that 
I was to accompany her. I descended the same 
narrow staircase, which was lighted only from 
above, so that as I went down it seemed to me that 
I was entering utter darkness. It appeared intermi- 
nable, and, in fact, contained one hundred and six 
steps. A guard was on duty at the foot, which 
gave upon a large corridor lighted day and night by 
lamps. This passage ran alongside the Emperor's 
apartments, and separated them from those of the 
Prince Imperial. 

The footman threw open a door, stood aside to 
let me pass in, closed it again, and I found myself 
in a large salon, hung with old damask, which 



106 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

opened upon a garden, where some ten persons 
were gathered in readiness to go out. 

The Vicomtesse Aguado, lady in waiting, arose 
and, coming forward, welcomed me in the kindest 
manner, saying that the Empress had informed her 
of my arrival. She presented me to the Baronne 
de Pierres, second lady in waiting, who was on duty 
with her, and named to me all those who were pres- 
ent and who composed the service of honor to their 
Majesties on that day. 

No one could better have aided me in overcom- 
ing the embarrassment of those first few moments 
than Mme. Aguado. She was one of the most ami- 
able and kind-hearted women in Paris, and, feeling 
instinctively how greatly I stood in need of self- 
confidence, she applied herself to making me feel 
at my ease. 

The first moments of such a difficult situation as 
that in which I then found myself exert a great 
influence over one's after-life. I owe much to the 
welcome I then received, for first impressions in 
youth are so vivid and lasting. The sympathy 
which I encountered greatly diminished my appre- 
hensions, and I quickly regained my composure and 
tranquillity. 

The Emperor and Empress soon appeared. Ev- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 107 

ery one arose, and his Majesty addressed a few words 
of greeting to me, after which we moved toward 
the carriages, which were stationed under the arch 
of the Pavilion de VHorloge. They were two huge 
berlins, and on the rumble behind each stood 
two footmen ; an outrider preceded them to clear 
the way. Their Majesties entered the first carriage 
with the aide-de-camp and gentleman in waiting. 
The Baron Philippe de Bourgoing, master of the 
horse, mounted on an exceedingly beautiful animal, 
galoped beside the right of the carriage, close to 
the Emperor's side. There was no other escort. 

I took my place with the two ladies in waiting 
and the Empress's chamberlain, the Marquis de Pi- 
ennes, in the second vehicle, which was exactly sim- 
ilar to the first. Our object was to visit an exhibi- 
tion of paintings, which I found exceedingly com- 
monplace. 

We returned at five o'clock, and as the carriages 
drew up under the archway, the soldier who 
mounted guard at the door of the entrance struck 
the ground with a blow of his halberd, which he 
held at arm's length. We again traversed the Em- 
peror's antechamber, where two ushers and two 
footmen were on guard, and then re-entered the 
salon into which I had been first introduced on my 



108 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

arrival, and which was the salon of the aide-de-camp 
in waiting. 

The Emperor and Empress both preceded us 
thither, and, after saluting those who had accom- 
panied them on their drive, withdrew, the Empress 
summoning me to follow her. Their Majesties re- 
paired to the private apartments of the Emperor, 
and his Majesty at once passed into his study, while 
the Empress, opening a door concealed by the hang- 
ings, ascended a small, very narrow staircase, en- 
tirely unlighted, which led directly from the Em- 
peror's apartments to her own. 

In the magnificent palace of the Tuileries, which 
had been constructed on so vast and sumptuous a 
scale, nothing had been planned for the require- 
ments of private life. After the 6th of October, 
1789, when Louis XYI. and Marie- Antoinette had 
taken possession of it, certain alterations in that 
respect had been improvised, but these had neces- 
sarily remained exceedingly imperfect and unsatis- 
factory. 

Outside the state apartments all the passages and 
stairways were so dark that it was necessary to burn 
lamps constantly in order to enable people to find 
their way about, and this circumstance created a 
heat and closeness which were actually oppressive. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 109 

Therefore, notwithstanding the beautiful chestnut 
trees in the garden, it was with a perfect feeling of 
relief and joy that we hailed the time of departure 
for Saint-Cloud or Fontainebleau. 

Aside from its luxury and state, the life of the 
Emperor and Empress was very different from the 
popular idea of the existence led by sovereigns. 
The Emperor applied himself closely to work, and 
his hours of leisure were extremely rare ; notwith- 
standing its outward appearance, his was scarcely to 
be reckoned a life of pleasure. Apart from state 
entertainments and occasional small balls in the 
spring-time, the Empress, at Paris, led a very lonely 
existence. She was always occupied, being a great 
reader, and devoured the newspapers, following 
the doings of the Chambers most carefully, and 
keeping informed regarding all the works of inter- 
est which made their appearance. 

She was very tender with the Prince Imperial, 

who was constantly with her, and interested herself 

in all the smallest details concerning him ; and as 

up to the age of ten the prince was wholly delivered 

over to feminine care and instruction, the Empress 

herself regulated the employment of his time, his 

exercise, his meals, and even chose his clothes like a 

most devoted mother, hearing directly from him, 
8 



110 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

either through Miss Shaw, the English governess 
who had been with him since his birth, M. Bachon, 
his master of horse, or his tutor, M. Monier. 

At the Tuileries the Emperor and Empress break- 
fasted privately with the Prince Imperial ; while at 
Saint-Cloud, Fontainebleau, Biarritz, or Compiegne 
breakfast was attended by all the service and their 
Majesties' guests. This meal, served at noon in the 
salon of Louis XIV., was rapidly dispatched, after 
which the Emperor repaired to her Majesty's study, 
where he smoked cigarettes while talking with his 
wife or playing with his child. 

At one o'clock the prince, in charge of M. 
Bachon, his governess, or tutor, drove out in a 
large carriage, which was open or shut according to 
the weather. He was easily recognized by the troop 
of cavalry which formed his escort. He almost al- 
ways drove to Bagatelle, a charming pavilion con- 
structed in the midst of the Bois de Boulogne in the 
short space of a few weeks, by the Comte d'Artois, 
for a fete given to Marie- Antoinette. 

Bagatelle belonged to the Marquis of Hertford, 
an Englishman who was a patron of the arts, with 
strong French predilections. The Emperor sought 
to buy from him this pretty domain, in order that 
the prince during his sojourns in Paris might have 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. HI 

a free, open place to drive in. But his lordship 
begged the Emperor to leave the property in his 
possession, insisting so gallantly that the prince 
should use it as he chose that the Emperor ac- 
cepted his kind proposal. The prince was gener- 
ally accompanied thither by Louis Conneau, the de- 
voted companion of his sports, a boy about his own 
age and son of Dr. Conneau, the oldest and most 
faithful of the Emperor's friends. 

Every time the prince went out, the Empress, 
after embracing him, made the sign of the cross 
with her thumb upon his brow. After the attempt 
of Orsini, she never parted from her husband or 
child without wondering if she should ever again 
see them return alive. After the prince went out 
and the Emperor had returned to his own apart- 
ments, the Empress always wrote to her mother, 
a letter being sent every day by the Spanish em- 
bassy from the Empress to the Comtesse de Montijo ; 
after this, her Majesty devoted herself to working 
with M. Damas-Hinard, her secretary. 

M. Damas-Hinard, M. de Saint- Albin, librarian 
to her Majesty, and the Comtesse de Wagner, read- 
er, arrived at the Tuileries about twelve o'clock 
every day. M. Damas-Hinard was a little, thin, 
smiling old man, with unusually fine white hair. 



112 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

who was always most correctly dressed in black with 
a white cravat — like a notary on occasions of cere- 
mony. He always carried under his arm a volu- 
minous portfolio, stuffed with papers. He had a 
suavity of speech, and was elaborately polite to 
ladies, bending almost double when he approached 
the Empress. He fulfilled his duties in a correct 
and reserved manner, assuming charge of all the re- 
quests and petitions which were addressed to her 
Majesty, and presenting them to her for considera- 
tion. Every day a large number accumulated. 

The Empress took personal cognizance of all, 
and would have none replied to until she had in- 
formed herself fully concerning them. M. Damas- 
Hinard received his orders from her, and afterward 
rendered her an account of the manner in which he 
had fulfilled them, without ever permitting himself 
the slightest personal commentary. The Empress 
was extremely accessible, and when the requests 
made of her were just and reasonable she endeavored 
to satisfy them to the best of her ability. Many of 
the petitions were of a singular and ridiculous char- 
acter. 

On the occasion of one of her state journeys, 
she one day received among other things a present 
of a cage of turtle-doves from the hands of a young 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 113 

girl, who offered them with so rnuch feeling that 
the Empress felt puzzled as to the meaning of 
this singular gift. Six months later she received a 
letter asking for a position in her employ ; it con- 
cluded thus : 

" It was I, madame, who offered you at two 

turtle-doves, which you accepted. As you love the 
birds, you might hire me to look out for them. I 
would give them the best of care." 

Thereafter, the Empress, suspecting a selfish 
motive hidden in all the presents addressed to her, 
caused them to be invariably returned. The quan- 
tity and variety of objects sent her were almost be- 
yond belief. They were of all sorts and descrip- 
tions — family souvenirs, historical relics, and almost 
everything else. Had they been retained, the old 
] umber-chests at the Tuileries would have been more 
than filled with a worthless collection of rubbish. 
Anonymous communications received but scant at- 
tention from her Majesty, which caused much dis- 
satisfaction among certain persons about her who 
sought to obtain for their friends imperial favors 
at the expense of those who possessed a legitimate 
claim to them. Many animosities are rooted in the 
frustration of petty ambitions. 

M. de Saint- Al bin was a scholar, a collector of 



114 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

taste and discretion, and a most excellent though 
singularly awkward man. He was extraordinarily 
negligent in his attire, and always wore the oldest 
and shabbiest hats, while his cravats were mere 
strings. One would have thought that his ancient 
and thread-bare clothing had been some of the cast- 
off relics of Louis Philippe's time. The Empress 
had known him before her marriage, and was deeply 
attached to him. Notwithstanding his unattractive 
exterior, he was most kind-hearted, and nearly 
every day brought me bouquets of violets, bonbons, 
or some similar trifle, which, to my utter despair, he 
invariably carried in his terrible old hat. 

The Comtesse de Wagner was quite seventy. 
She had been very pretty, and talked most readily 
about her past beauty, employing all the resources 
which the age afforded to repair the " dread ravages 
of time." She always dressed like a young girl, in 
the latest fashion, and her toilet was, I think, her 
greatest weakness. In spite of this, however, she 
was most amiable and intelligent. 

The Empress often expressed her wonder at the 
old lady's continued youthfulness, which pleased 
her vastly. One day she appeared at the Tuil- 
eries with her photograph, which, though it looked 
like a woman of thirty, yet resembled her strong- 



COURT OF TEE TUILEEIES. 115 

ly. The Empress could not repress her astonish- 
ment. 

" I desired to leave an agreeable likeness to my 
friends," the countess explained, "and I therefore 
told the photographer to put in all that was neces- 
sary and take out all that was unnecessary. I think 
I have succeeded in getting a very pretty picture." 

Mine, de Wagner loved to make us think that 
she held long and familiar conversations with her 
Majesty. 

" I really must go and tell the Empress a most 
excellent story," she would say, and immediately 
start with quick, short steps across the series of 
salons ; then, reaching the door of the Empress's 
study, and knowing that her Majesty disliked being 
disturbed for trifles, she would hesitate and pause, 
finally withdrawing into the embrasure of a window 
next the study, thinking she was concealed from 
view. But the amplitude of her skirts betrayed 
her, and from the salon where we sat we could see 
the poor countess waiting alone and motionless, 
staring blankly out into the gardens, sometimes 
for over half an hour; then, all of a sudden, she 
would return with a radiant air of satisfaction and, 
rewarding herself for so long a restraint, pour forth 
to us a voluble account of all the ideas which 



116 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

she and the Empress were supposed to have ex- 
changed. 

These absurd little scenes, which were oft-re- 
peated, amused me, I must confess, immensely, 
despite the real affection I felt for the countess, who 
was most excellently and benevolently disposed. 
Sometimes her Majesty surprised her little trickery, 
and was greatly amused thereby. 

Mme. de Wagner usually wore a wig of the 
most beautiful, waving brown hair; one day she 
appeared at the Tuileries completely transformed. 
It was at the time that Hortense Schneider was 
turning the heads of all Paris by her rendering of 
the rdle of La Belle Helene. Mme. de "Wagner 
was decked out in a wig d la greeque, similar to 
that worn by this charming actress. When she re- 
moved her bonnet and I saw the cranium of this 
good lady crowned with a bunch of light curls, 
as blonde and airy as those of a child, which sur- 
mounted her painted and wrinkled face with the 
drollest effect, I was seized with such a convulsion 
of laughter that, losing all control of my counte- 
nance, I was obliged to fly in order not to disgrace 
myself. 

Just at that moment the Empress came out of 
her study, and, seeing me indulging in such a violent 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 117 

fit of merriment, began to laugh herself, inquiring 
the cause of my amusement. But I was beyond re- 
plying, and could only motion to the salon where 
Mme. de Wagner was. There the Empress found 
her standing before a mirror, rearranging her ridicu- 
lous coiffure with the most affected gestures. This 
time her Majesty was really annoyed. 

" Go," she said to me, "and tell Mme. de Wag- 
ner from me, that I desire her at once to remove 
that wig." 

I recovered myself a little and begged the Em- 
press to spare me the delivery of such a message, 
for I knew that I could not contain myself suffi- 
ciently to give it with becoming gravity. 

" Go, go ! " her Majesty replied. " I desire it, 
and hope I shall never again witness such a thing ; 
it is sufficient to cover my household with ridicule 
should any one see it." And the Empress, really 
angry, re-entered her study. 

Yery fortunately M. de Piennes, the gentleman in 
waiting, came to my relief. The Marquis de Piennes 
was one of the kindest-hearted men I ever knew. 
He was a person of extreme worth and intellect, 
whose manner was somewhat crusty, though it did 
not detract in the least from his really fine qualities. 
He persuaded Mme. de Wagner to listen to reason, 



118 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

which was a somewhat difficult matter, as she had 
no misgivings as to her appearance, having counted 
on an immense success. He replaced her bonnet on 
the infantine curls and sent her gentl y away, having 
made her promise to return the wig. The next day 
the good countess reappeared with her ordinary 
brown locks. She had an extraordinarily large cor- 
respondence, and spent most of her time at the Tu- 
ileries in writing to her various friends. One day, 
while she was absorbed in writing, the Empress 
stole up behind her and read over her shoulder : 

" There has been a great mortality among the 
senators this year; if I only might be allowed to re- 
place one of them ! " 

" Go and ask the Emperor to permit you to do 
so," said the Empress to her. 

And she went in all seriousness, thereby greatly 
amusing his Majesty. Her position was a sinecure ; 
she wrote letters and awaited the pleasure of the 
Empress until the arrival of the ladies in waiting, 
who came at about two o'clock. Happily for her- 
self the poor lady died before the war, and Mme. 
Lebreton, sister of General Bourbaki, who still con- 
tinues with her Majesty, replaced her. 

Before my arrival no woman save Mme. Pollet 
and the servants lived in the Tuileries, at least in 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 119 

that part between the Pavilion de Vllorloge and 
the Pavilion de Flore, which formed the private 
dwelling of their Majesties. 

The Emperor's apartments commanded a view 
of the garden, while those of the Prince Imperial 
looked out upon the Place du Carrousel. Those of 
the Empress were on the first floor above the gar- 
den, over the Emperor's suite. They ran parallel 
to the reception rooms, which extended from the 
Pavilion de Vllorloge to the Galerie de Diane, 
looking toward the Seine. A partial restoration of 
them had been begun at the time of the Empress's 
marriage and was finished by his Majesty in 1858. 

A grand staircase with three landings and 
guarded by a balustrade of wrought iron ascended 
from the vestibule upon w T hich the Emperor's apart- 
ments opened, and which was situated under the 
arch on the left of the Pavilion de Vllorloge. 
This staircase was lighted on the first floor by two 
large windows which were duplicated above. Its 
white marble steps were covered by a red and blue 
Turkey carpet and its sides were decorated with old 
tapestries representing the nymph Daphne as she is 
about being transformed into the laurel. One 
could see the long branches beginning to sprout 
from her finger-tips and the bark already covering 



120 RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 

her slender body. In the first turning at the foot 
of the stairs had been placed a remarkable bit of 
marble statuary representing a bull of the Roman 
Campagna, half life size. 

The windows were protected from the sun by 
flower-painted blinds, and on the right of the top of 
the staircase a double folding door opened directly 
into the Salle des Marechaux. 

On the left were, the private apartments of the 
Empress, which consisted of a suite of ten rooms, 
overlooking the garden. One first entered a wait- 
ing-room furnished with a single window, which was 
the salon devoted to the ushers. This was usually 
tenanted by M. Bignet, her Majesty's head usher, 
an excellent person who acquitted himself of his 
delicate duties with a mute and respectful zeal. He 
directed the internal administration of the palace, 
and received his orders directly from the Em- 
press. We used to call him the thirteenth lady in 
waiting. 

Indeed, it often happened that when her ladies 
were absent, M. Bignet took it upon himself to ac- 
quaint her Majesty with such and such an incident 
which had occurred, and of which it was necessary 
that she should be promptly informed. He re- 
minded us of the dates of the audiences and the 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 121 

names of the persons expected to be present, having 
possession of the register in which they were in- 
scribed. He was wonderfully exact in all his du- 
ties, and though his discretion was above reproach, 
yet by reason of his methodical habits he uncon- 
sciously furnished us with all sorts of petty informa. 
tion. So it happened that we often learned through 
him of the yet unannounced movements and flit- 
tings of the court, drawing our information from 
his actions. 

For instance, whenever the Empress took a 
journey, she carried with her a little silver tea- 
caddy, which had belonged to a service of Napoleon 
I., and two little silver owls, used as salt-shakers. 
When these objects were absent from the tea-table, 
which was regularly brought into the salon every 
evening, it was a sure indication that a visit was in 
contemplation — Bignet had packed them. Some- 
times the caddy and owls reappeared, and then we 
knew that the plans had been changed. He was 
generally sent by the Empress to warn the Emperor 
that she was ready to go out, or that she was about 
to enter the salons ; in fact, all the trifling commu- 
nications which required an intermediary between 
her Majesty and the Emperor, the Prince Imperial, 
or any one in the palace, were confided to him. 



122 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

He was thoroughly familiar with every article be- 
longing to the Empress, and could tell their where- 
abouts more precisely than any one else. 

Bignet followed the Empress into exile, and his 
daughter was among her Majesty's women of the 
chamber. The poor man left the Tuileries on the 
4th of September, and died in England, inconsolable 
at the fall of the empire. 

The Empress's ushers, three in number, were 
changed daily. They wore brown coats a la Fran- 
gaise and knee-breeches adorned with silver em- 
broidery, black silk stockings with buckled shoes, 
and the silver chain which was their badge of office. 

Besides the usher on duty, two footmen always 
waited in the antechamber. 

The next room was the salon belonging to the 
ladies in waiting. It was painted in fresco. Upon 
a sea-green background were raised fine arabesques 
in different shades of the same color ; the ceiling 
represented a huge basket of flowers, and upon the 
frieze were painted birds and blossoms. The man- 
tels, bronzes, and furnishing were very elegant, 
being in the purest style of the time of Louis XVI. 
The gilded furniture was covered with exquisite 
Gobelin tapestries, representing bouquets of huge 
flowers embroidered on a white ground, finished 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 123 

with a light brown border of designs worked in 
gold thread. Here the ladies established themselves 
when on duty, with their work, correspondence, 
or books, which were kept in an inlaid cabinet be- 
tween the windows. 

The next salon was similar to this, with rose- 
colored decorations in which quantities of flowers 
were mingled. The ceiling, painted by Chaplin, 
was remarkably beautiful and represented the tri- 
umph of Flora. Here persons expecting an audi- 
ence awaited the imperial summons. The furni- 
ture in this apartment was likewise covered with 
tapestry — flowers on a white ground with rose-col- 
ored borders. 

The third salon was blue ; and here the Em- 
press had been pleased to place above the doors 
portraits of the prettiest women who surrounded 
her. Each represented in her costume one of the 
great powers of Europe. 

The young Princesse Anna Murat, still quite a 
child, notwithstanding the precocious development 
of her beauty, lent the freshness of her blonde brill- 
iancy and the delicacy of her lovely features to the 
representation of the daughters of England ; the 
Duchesse de Malakoff, the purest type of Andalu- 
sian beauty, wore the traditional mantilla and scar- 



124 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

let flower of the women of Granada ; the Duchesse 
de Moray, that young and aristocratic foreigner, 
ravished from the court of Russia by our ambassa- 
dor who represented France so brilliantly at the 
coronation of the Czar Alexander II., showed her 
charming face, with its snowy tint, and her wonder- 
ful hair, which seemed dusted with silver, beneath 
the national head-dress. The fair Comtesse Wa- 
lewska was in Florentine costume. The sweet and 
charming Duchesse de Cadore wore the Oriental 
turban of Hay dee ; and the Duchesse de Persigny, 
fair as a goddess, concluded a collection of beauty 
worthy to surround an Empress whose incompara- 
ble profile was suspended from the middle of the 
arch in a medallion supported by allegorical figures. 
Until recently one could distinguish through the 
wide, gaping windows of the ruined Tuileries some 
remnants of art which fire and the outrages of time 
seemed to have respected. One could discover in 
the Empress's apartments, beneath the crumbling 
cornices, dim traces of delicate female profiles. 
Faint shadows as they were, they yet seemed to re- 
tain, amid the desolate ruins, a suggestion of the 
grace, elegance, and beauty which for so many 
years distinguished the court of France among those 
of the whole world. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 125 

It was in the blue salon that the Empress gave 
audiences. 

The long, deep windows of all the salons were 
garnished with tapestry lambrequins corresponding 
to the furniture, and with immense white satin 
curtains. In order to soften the light and yet pre- 
serve the view of the garden, the panes were shaded 
by little blinds made of dark blue gauze. Every 
object in these apartments had been chosen with 
the most exquisite taste. There were clocks, vases, 
candlesticks, and marvelous bronzes decorating the 
costly inlaid cabinets. Upon the occasions of the 
small private balls which her Majesty gave in the 
spring-time, she received in these salons which 
opened into the state apartments, and, heightened 
as they then were by the brilliant illumination and 
the profuse floral decorations, their delicate beauty 
seemed worthy of a fairy palace. 



126 RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 



VI. 



Next to the blue salon came the Empress's 
study, which was her real home — wherein she had 
collected all her personal souvenirs and where she 
passed many lonely moments. With the exception 
of a few privileged friends, no one intruded upon 
her there. 

It was there she worked, read, and arranged her 
papers — those famous papers of the Tuileries of 
which so few have been recovered. The Empress, 
at the time of the invasion of Paris when the 
siege was determined on, took precaution to send 
them on board the royal squadron, together with the 
chefs-oVceuvre from the Louvre, which thus would 
still have been preserved to France, even if the de- 
signs of the Commune to burn all our palaces had 
been realized. After the 4th of September the 
papers were returned to the Empress in England. 
All of any importance had therefore been for some 
time in safety when it occurred to the National De- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 127 

fense to seize and publish the imperial correspond- 
ence. 

The arrangement of these papers was one of the 
principal occupations of the Empress's life, as they 
were so numerous that they required incessant 
labor to classify them. In them the Empress pos- 
sesses a curious collection of documents. In a cer- 
tain way they are the most vivid history of our time, 
and comprise letters from sovereigns, diplomats, 
statesmen, generals, authors, and savants. Many 
of those who to-day pride themselves upon their in- 
dependence of action toward the empire would be 
sadly embarrassed by having thrust before their 
eyes communications overflowing with eloquent 
gratitude to its chief representative for favors ac- 
corded them, for services rendered, for benefits be- 
stowed ; all of which, though the recollection may 
have escaped their feeble memories, are indelibly 
recorded upon simple bits of paper, which will, 
however, be amply sufficient as testimony to pos- 
terity. 

The Empress, through her feminine intuition, 
divined of what importance these papers might some 
day become; and as the Emperor, indifferent to 
trifles, threw them carelessly aside, she collected all 
that she could of these waifs. To-day they form a 



128 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

monument where, as at the Tower of Babel, all 
tongues are spoken and all human weaknesses ex- 
posed. 

The Emperor often laughed at what he chose to 
call the Empress's mania for collecting these papers, 
and even her Majesty herself jested about it. 

il I am like a mouse at the Emperor's side," 
she would say, " picking up all the crumbs he 
lets fall." 

During the Commune, after the war, when the 
violent rage of unbridled passion was directed 
against the empire, when the most unjust and un- 
founded accusations were raised against the Em- 
peror, it would have been a simple matter to have 
confounded many of the most ardent of his detract- 
ors by merely unfolding these packages of papers, 
for many of them bear names whose owner's shame 
it was to have dared to conspire with adversaries 
of the empire in bringing against his Majesty the 
most false and odious calumniations. But of de- 
scending to such a thing the Emperor never 
dreamed. He had all the disdain of a great nature 
for what was small and cowardly. His memory is 
ennobled by such a course of action. 

The character of her Majesty's study was quite 
different from that of the preceding rooms. In it 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 129 

one divined the private life of the sovereign, and 
could form a pretty correct estimate of her habits, 
tastes, and occupations. xSo one understood better 
than she the art of interior arrangement, and like 
all those who love their homes she enjoyed sur- 
rounding herself with every variety of object hal- 
lowed by the charm of association. Therefore her 
Majesty had collected in this apartment all her 
souvenirs, everything that she loved to have about 
her, the thousand and one trifles necessary to her 
convenience and happiness. Her taste had directed 
the entire furnishing ; she had carried out her own 
ideas and designs, combining shades and arranging 
the furniture with the most exquisite taste and the 
fullest comprehension of the comfortable. 

Hangings of dull India silk with wide satin 
stripes of soft, pale green gave to the room a home- 
like aspect, and threw into admirable relief the pict- 
ures which adorned the walls ; while the luxuri- 
ously stuffed furniture and curtains of crimson 
satin gave a most happy relief to the somewhat 
somber character of the hangings. The doors and 
windows were of mahogany ornamented with beau- 
tiful fastenings of wrought bronze. The red mar- 
ble mantel, sustained by artistically molded bronzes, 
supported a female figure in white marble called 



130 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

" L'Etoile," a most exquisite and celebrated work of 
art. It represented a graceful young form cast in 
charming lines. With her head slightly bent upon 
her upraised arms and a star on her brow, she 
seemed about to spring into the air, while a Cupid 
gracefully reclining at her feet held aloft a flaming 
torch. 

This statue, rescued from the burning of the 
Tuileries, belongs to-day to the family of Mme. de 
Sancy, one of the ladies in waiting of whom her 
Majesty was especially fond. The Empress gave it 
to her as a souvenir of her attachment when about 
to depart for Zululand in 1880, " it being one of 
my treasures which you most admire, and which I 
desire to leave in friendly hands." 

Two large Chinese vases carved with odd ani- 
mals and arabesques, standing on either side the 
statue, were filled with broad green leaves which 
formed a sort of arch above it. A large sofa fac- 
ing the mantel stood next a Louis XVI. desk of 
mahogany mounted in brass. Two tables with cov- 
ers of green rep, whose embroidered borders had 
been worked by the Empress herself, stood near by, 
and with the couch and desk formed a little group 
occupying the middle of the apartment. A tall 
eighteenth-century clock in a brass bound mahogany 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 131 

frame replaced the missing jpendule, and between 
the two windows stood a glass case filled with a 
goodly collection of priceless curiosities and souve- 
nirs. This contained among other things the hat 
worn by the Emperor when his life was attempted 
by Orsini, the corals and first toys of the Prince Im- 
perial, and many relics of the Duchesse d'Albe, 
which were for the most part hidden from view in 
the crowded space below. 

In the corners stood two female figures in light 
bronze mounted on columns and supporting cande- 
labra that served to light the apartment. A great 
full-length portrait of the Emperor, dressed in 
black court costume, painted by Cabanel, and which 
was altogether the best likeness ever done of him, 
hung in the middle of one wall, while the space on 
the left of the mantel was filled by a fine portrait 
of the Duchesse d'Albe. Enveloped in a cloud of 
floating gauze, she looked like a smiling vision of 
fleeting youth, and often as the Empress stood and 
studied her sister's beautiful face, her tears would 
gush forth in irrepressible yearning and regret. 

A portrait of the young Princesse Anna Murat, 
by AY interh alter, hung between the windows. A 
wide archway draped with Eastern stuff of silken 
texture, in hues of violet and gold, separated the 



132 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Empress's study from a smaller apartment lighted 
by a solitary window, and on each side of this arch 
stood a bookcase filled with rare and precious vol- 
umes, together with a collection of ancient and val- 
uable manuscripts. Above one of these book-cases 
was placed one of Hebert's pictures, representing 
some Italian women drawing water at a well. 

The space on the right of the mantel next the 
windows had been reserved by the Empress for a 
painting which she had ordered from CabaneL Her 
Majesty waited long for the fulfillment of her com- 
mand, and one day, when the artist presented him- 
self at one of her receptions, she took him into her 
study and showed him the empty panel where hung 
the silken cord designed to hold the long-delayed 
picture. 

" This vacant space depresses me," said her 
Majesty to him, " and I can not bring myself to fill 
it by any lesser thing than that you have promised 
me. You must either paint me my picture at once 
or this cord shall be used to hang you with." 

Shortly after, Cabanel sent her a Euth, exqui- 
sitely lovely in her biblical costume, consisting of 
the long blue tunic which the Fellah women then 
wore, and the black widow's veil lightly enshroud- 
ing her poetical young features. The Empress was 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 133 

enchanted with it. This took place after my mar- 
riage, and her Majesty commissioned me to engage 
Cabanel to paint my portrait, desiring to see how he 
would succeed before ordering him to paint her 
own, which, she said, should be the last she would 
leave of herself. 

Cabanel painted me, but not the Empress ; after 
events precluded the fulfillment of the project. It 
was a pity, for assuredly he would have executed a 
work worthy of himself and his noble model, and 
we should thus have had a really satisfactory souve- 
nir of her Majesty — for none of the Empress's por- 
traits now in existence do her full justice. The 
grand state portrait of her Majesty, which repre- 
sents her in her court robes and jeweled diadem, 
in the midst of all the emblems of royalty — copies 
of which hung in all the palaces and official resi- 
dences — is marked by a sort of stiffness which 
spoils the resemblance. It possesses, indeed, her 
charming features, her clear coloring, and the noble 
grace of her beautiful figure ; but whereas the Em- 
press was, above everything else, animated and 
sparkling, the frigidity and immobility of expres- 
sion which characterize this picture recall abso- 
lutely nothing of the personality it is intended to 
represent. This was painted by "Wmterhalter. 



134 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

They have endeavored to reproduce the Em- 
press's beauty in a hundred different fashions ; 
painting, sculpture, and engraving have each tried 
their skill upon her, and have failed equally. The 
truth is that there was something about her Majesty 
which was fugitive and baffling ; a mobility of ex- 
pression, an animation of manner, which defied all 
interpretation. 

Another portrait, also painted by Winterhalter, 
and representing the Empress in profile and draped 
in a blue burnous, with pearls about her throat and 
her hair falling in careless ringlets upon her neck, 
is a much better likeness, the best perhaps in exist- 
ence; but this is only a mere study. A copy of 
this was done by the artist himself for the Com- 
tesse de Montijo. On the eve of her departure for 
Zululand, after her son's death, the Empress gave 
to M. Rouher a portrait in which she was repre- 
sented in a sitting attitude, with purple iris in her 
hair. This has been often copied. 

Another portrait, surmounted by the imperial 
coat of arms, shows the Empress dressed in black 
and wearing a diadem, while a long white veil 
floats about her. This was executed for the Du- 
chesse d'Albe, and is one of the most successful 
likenesses of the Empress. It is now in the D'Albe 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 135 

palace at Madrid. There is still another which was 
saved from the conflagration at Saint-Cloud, and 
which I had always coveted ; this her Majesty gave 
me in Camden Place, in 1880, as she was about to 
set out for Zululand. It is a tiny canvas, painted 
by Boulanger, in 1S60, and represents the Em- 
press seated, and wearing the Fellah costume, with 
an Egyptian turban of red ibis. It reproduces 
more successfully than all the state portraits the 
Empress's peculiar expression and the partially 
veiled and mysterious look in her large blue eyes. 

Most of the paintings and busts have a com- 
posed and rigid expression which forbids all resem- 
blance to her Majesty. The bust made by Comte 
de Niewerkerke, the w T orthy Superintendent des 
Beaux Arts, though a trifle lacking in animation, is 
yet most spirited and graceful, besides being a very 
fair likeness. 

The Empress usually occupied a low fauteuil, 
withdrawn a little into the shadow, near the mantel, 
with her feet resting on a small hassock ; a low 
silken screen sheltered her from draughts. At her 
left hand, in the chimney-corner, stood a little ebony 
table covered with papers ; on this were placed her 
blotting-case and inkstand, the latter being of the 
severe style pertaining to offices— a porcelain well 



136 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

surrounded by a moist sponge and bearing an equip- 
ment of goose-quills — writing implements which 
are seldom used nowadays. Her Majesty always 
wrote on her lap, very rapidly, and in a large, well- 
formed, and extremely legible hand. At her right 
stood a small, round library -table, on which lay her 
favorite books. 

A large table occupied a place near the second 
window, and was partially concealed by a gilded 
bamboo screen covered with ivy, rooted in a 
jardiniere filled with flowers. This screen formed 
a partition, isolating from the rest of the apartment 
this table, which was covered with albums, drawing- 
paper, and color boxes. The Empress was a skill- 
ful designer and painted well in water-colors. This 
talent was of excellent service to her in drawing 
plans for reconstruction or refurnishing, work in 
which she loved to indulge her taste. 

The alcove was decorated after the same style as 
the study, and had a mantel opposite the window. 
Here were other book-cases, filled with classical 
works selected from the masterpieces of French, 
English, Spanish, and Italian literature. The Em- 
press spoke all of these languages with equal fa- 
cility. Above the book-shelves were ranged statu- 
ettes, busts, vases, and a collection of small pictures, 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 137 

each of which was a gem. Among them were some 
priceless Wouvermans which, her Majesty valued 
highly; a tiny white marble statue, delieiously 
draped, stood in the middle of a round jardiniere 
placed before the window ; upon the various tables 
were scattered pictures, photographs of the Em- 
peror, of the Prince Imperial at different ages, and 
of the persons to whom the Empress was attached. 
A miniature of the Comte de Montijo, though the 
features were partially obscured by a black bandage 
bound across his face to conceal a wound which he 
had received in the service of France during the 
wars of the first empire, yet bore a striking resem- 
blance to the Empress. He had the same noble cast 
of countenance, the same brilliant coloring, and the 
same golden hair. 

One could also see here pictures of her Majes- 
ty's mother and a miniature of the Queen of Hol- 
land, with whom the Empress kept up a very warm 
correspondence. Queen Sophie, Princesse de Wur- 
temberg, was cousin-german to Prince Napoleon 
and the Princesse Mathilde, through Queen Cather- 
ine of Wurtemberg, wife of King Jerome. She 
was a person of eminent intellectual endowments, 
thoroughly versed in the science of European poli- 
tics. Her letters — still preserved by the Empress — 



138 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

are wonderfully interesting, She spoke several lan- 
guages, and expressed herself in the purest and 
most elegant French. Though exceedingly amiable, 
affectionate, and warm-hearted, the queen led a life 
of strict retirement in Holland. She wrote often 
and elaborately to the Empress, whose replies were 
warmly welcomed by her, containing as they did 
all the Parisian news and gossip— interesting read- 
ing to a person in her somewhat isolated condition, 
and of which she showed her appreciation by im- 
mediately sitting down, upon receipt of an epistle 
from her Majesty, and answering it. This rather 
troubled the Empress, who reproached herself with 
not prosecuting the correspondence with the same 
fervor. 

The Queen of Holland was a woman of great 
worth. She still retained traces of beauty, such as 
a fine figure, a remarkably attractive face, and 
beautiful golden-brown hair, which she continued 
to wear in ringlets, though this style of coiffure had 
long gone out of fashion. 

The Queen, whose subsidies were reduced by 
her husband, the King of Holland, to the smallest 
minimum, traveled in no state, being generally ac- 
companied by a single old lady of honor, who was, 
however, most devoted to her. These journeys, 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 139 

which she made for the purpose of visiting the dif- 
ferent sovereigns or allied princes, were her greatest 
pleasure in life. She came as often as she could to 
Paris, where she preferred to remain incognito, 
somewhat dreading, perhaps, the obligations and 
restraint of etiquette. I have often seen her, after 
an interval of several years, reappear in the same 
dress of cherry- colored silk, which threw into 
strong relief the brilliant tints of her pink and 
white complexion. She gave some variety to the 
gown by occasionally substituting trimmings of 
white for those of black lace. 

Queen Sophie nobly fulfilled her obligations as 
sovereign. Having renounced for herself all the 
appanage and luxury of royalty, she consecrated to 
works of charity and benevolence the slender re- 
sources which the King left at her command. She 
was mother of the Prince of Orange, who, with his 
blonde hair, fair skin, and regular features, strongly 
resembled her. He was far better than his reputa- 
tion in certain Parisian circles, where his name had 
been freely travestied by the Due de Gramont- 
Caderousse, in consequence of his conduct at one 
of the little suppers in which young men are 
wont to indulge, and where the prince unfortu- 
nately permitted himself to become rather too 



140 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

buoyant. In the gay world lie was called " Prince 
Citron." 

He was extremely kind-hearted and was greatly 
beloved in his own country, where he might have 
become a most distinguished prince had it not been 
for his father's harsh and distrustful treatment of 
him — the King being unnaturally jealous of any 
manifestation toward his son. The discomfort and 
wretchedness of his home life threw him back upon 
the distractions of an aimless, idle existence, which 
robbed him not only of his dignity, but eventually 
and prematurely of his life. 

Whenever she visited Paris, the Queen besought 
the Empress to seek to withhold her son from evil 
influences. She comprehended how impossible ex- 
istence was for him at the Hague with his father, 
and mourned terribly the lad's deplorably wasted 
life. She had the misfortune of surviving him. A 
second son still remained to her, Prince Alexandre, 
but he, alas ! died in his turn. This unfortunate 
prince was deformed and very infirm, and the Queen 
devoted most of her time to tenderly caring for and 
ministering to him. 

The Prince of Orange was one of the first to 
present his respects to the Emperor and Empress in 
their exile at Chiselhurst. This he did in defiance 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 141 

of the formally expressed wish of the King, whose 
violent displeasure he anticipated, knowing that his 
father feared that any manifestation of sympathy 
for the dethroned monarch would entangle him in 
difficulties with the Prussian Government. 

The name of the Prince of Orange has always 
been associated with a Parisian adventure, of which, 
however, he was not the hero. A very pretty young 
woman, belonging to commercial circles, was sur- 
prised by her husband in a fashionable cabaret, in 
the company of a prince of the blood royal, enjoy- 
ing a most delightful supper. Her partner, embar- 
rassed at the thought of hearing his name associated 
with an affair of this kind, which would furnish 
amusement to the whole of Paris— the woman, aided 
by the people of the house, had made her escape 
dressed as a scullery-maid — confided his difficulty to 
the Prince of Orange, whom chance had brought to 
the same rendezvous. The latter generously as- 
sumed the credit of the adventure in the place of 
the actual culprit, considering that, as he was un- 
married, his affairs of gallantry could not offend 
any one. Thus he gained the name of the affair 
without having had the game. 

Being an exile from his own country and the 

sport of caprice and idleness, he rapidly drifted 
10 



142 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

downward from sheer unconcern and lack of am- 
bition. He was very bashful, and was characterized 
by a little guttural peculiarity which affected his 
speech, although this quite disappeared when he 
was at his ease. He appeared most grateful for 
good advice, and even confessed that he felt little 
pleasure or satisfaction in a life of dissipation. He 
was at bottom a good-hearted, sensible, and amiable 
man, even disposed to melancholy, who, having been 
thrust from his proper sphere, endeavored to stifle 
his natural self by wearisome and worthless indul- 
gences. 

On leaving her Majesty's study, one crossed an 
antechamber whose sole illumination came from a 
hanging lamp which was always kept burning. The 
little staircase descending to the Emperor's apart- 
ments led from this room ; and here, also, was sta- 
tioned the cupboard containing the imperial cor- 
respondence. On opening a closet door in the wain- 
scoting, a large number of pigeon-holes were dis- 
closed, marked with letters and numbers and filled 
with packets of alphabetically arranged papers. 

Very soon after my arrival at the Tuileries the 
Empress instructed me in this work, and almost 
every day I spent several hours in her study, classi- 
fying, cataloguing, and recording this immense cor- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 143 

respondence, which had accumulated since the time 
of Napoleon I. It has greatly increased since the 
events of the war, the Commune, the exile and death 
of the Emperor, and the tragic end of the Prince 
Imperial. 

The Empress has preserved copies of all her 
son's letters ; his correspondence with men of poli- 
tics and with his friends, in which he shared with 
them his hopes and ambitions ; his very interesting 
essays upon historical subjects, and his views regard- 
ing political matters ; in all of which one can dis- 
cern the energy, decision of character, ardent pa- 
triotism, and high aspirations of this young prince, 
who was so remarkably endowed, and who seemed 
created to regenerate and elevate his country. 

Completely devoted to the memory of her adora- 
ble son as she is, will the Empress decide to publish 
these relics? Will she have the courage to open 
the sanctuary of her maternal and unassuageable 
grief in order to deliver up to the public apprecia- 
tion all that is left us of that pure, lofty, and won- 
derfully mature young soul ? As a sovereign de- 
sirous of impressing the world with a knowledge of 
the worth and nobility of a prince of her own blood, 
whose fate will perhaps weigh so heavily on the 
future of France, will she find strength to overcome 



144 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

her maternal jealousy of all that touches her son's 
private life, and share these souvenirs with that 
world % Should we, ought we ask it % Can we de- 
sire to add one drop more of bitterness to her cup 
of gall ? 

After crossing this small, dark antechamber, one 
entered an immense room, lighted by three long 
windows opening upon a balcony. This was the 
Empress's dressing-room. It was surrounded by 
huge mirrors which gave back reflections upon ev- 
ery side. Washstands, a concealed bath-tub, which, 
unlike that of M. Gambetta at the Presidency, was 
not made of silver — a large dressing-table of lace 
garnished with ribbon, on which stood a magnificent 
silver-gilt dressing-case, a souvenir of Queen Hor- 
tense ; tables, chairs of every variety, light chests for 
holding dresses — everything, in fact, which could 
minister to the comfort and requirements of an ele- 
gant woman of the world had a place there. A 
huge white satin corbeille, which, filled with flow- 
ers, had been presented to her on her wedding- 
day by the market-women of Paris, and which she 
prized very highly, was used to contain her linen 
and various toilet articles. 

Previous to my going to the palace I had heard 
that the Empress, having been very ill at the birth 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 145 

of the Prince Imperial, had remained for some time 
afterward in such a delicate condition that she was 
obliged to wear under her dress a steel corset, and 
that to save her the fatigue of standing during the 
operations of her toilet there had been arranged a 
method of lowering her dresses from the ceiling, in 
such a fashion that, as she stood beneath, her gown 
and all her skirts, which at that time were exceed- 
ingly numerous, could be together placed upon her 
figure, thus accomplishing her toilet at a single 
stroke — quite like a transformation scene in a fairy 
pantomime. 

The first time that I had occasion to assist at 
the Empress's toilet, which afterward became an 
event of frequent occurrence, I saw a sort of small 
elevator, which was usually concealed by the deco- 
ration of the ceiling, detach itself from above and 
descend over our heads. This, I learned, was used 
by her Majesty's tire-women to lower the garments 
required for her toilet, and thus do away with con- 
stant running up and down stairs, which, as the pri- 
vate staircase was extremely narrow, would have 
crushed and rumpled the delicate garments. 

I could not refrain from smiling as I looked at 
the little lift, and greatly amused the Empress by 
recounting the fable to which it had given rise. She 



146 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

remarked to me that the public imagination was 
only too fertile when it dealt with persons of high 
rank, and that a very small grain of truth sufficed 
as groundwork for monstrous and sometimes danger- 
ous fabrications. 

Thanks to this clever bit of mechanism and a 
speaking-tube connecting with the apartments of her 
tire-women, her Majesty's toilet could be promptly 
and easily conducted. But it was none the less true 
that the Empress's health had indeed been severely 
tested at the time of her son's birth, which had 
nearly cost her her life. 

In the early months of her marriage she had had 
two miscarriages, and possibly these accidents had 
rendered her final accouchement more difficult ; 
perhaps also the physicians in charge, burdened 
with the heavy responsibility which weighed upon 
them, were not as considerate of her safety as they 
would have been of that of other women. This is 
often the case with royal mothers ; state reasons 
direct every event in their lives. The hope of giv- 
ing an ardently desired heir to the Emperor caused 
the physicians to assume greater risks with the Em- 
press than they would have employed with an or- 
dinary woman. At all events, they allowed her to 
suffer for three days and nights, and finally in- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 147 

formed the Emperor of the necessity of having re- 
course to an operation, which they had deferred, 
fearing to compromise the life of the child. 

" Consider the Empress only," said his Majesty. 

As every minute was of vital importance, they 
acted with such extreme hastiness that the Empress 
purchased her child's life at the cost of a terrible 
strain upon her own strength. But finally her 
health became quite restored, and I know few 
women so capable of enduring fatigue and emotion 
of every kind as she. 

A small apartment, lighted by a single window, 
separated the dressing-room from the sleeping-room. 
This was divided into two parts by a partition 
decorated with paintings on a gold background, be- 
hind which was concealed the private oratory of the 
Empress. The partition was usually kept closed, 
but opened for divine service by means of two 
folding doors. It was there that the Empress gen- 
erally heard mass ; it was there that she performed 
her daily devotions and accomplished her religious 
duties, preferring to be alone at her prayers ; it was 
there that the Prince Imperial was prepared by 
Abbe Deguerry for his first communion ; and it 
was there that for the last time, on the 4th of Sep- 
tember, 1870, the Empress Eugenie heard mass at 



148 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

the palace of the Tuileries. It was from that tiny, 
narrow chapel, from the breaking heart of a sover- 
eign exposed to the blind f ury of an excited popu- 
lace, from the soul of a woman wounded in her 
wifely pride and her maternal ambitions, that arose 
the last prayer to God from the depths of that pal- 
ace of our kings, that silent witness of so many 
fetes, of so much grandeur, of such bitter mourning, 
and of such overwhelming defeats ; it was from a 
royal spirit in distress that was sent forth that su- 
preme cry to an overruling Providence. 

Since the time of Marie- Antoinette, the daughter 
of Maria-Theresa — that beautiful young archduchess 
who was confided to our keeping as one of the fair- 
est jewels in the imperial crown of Austria, that 
proud and happy-hearted young dauphine whose 
arrival in France was hailed by a people captivated 
by her youthful loveliness and grace, and whose 
sorrows dated from the moment a royal diadem 
touched her charming brow — since her tragic end, 
what a series of misfortunes has pursued all those 
who, happy, beloved, and prosperous, have crossed 
the threshold of that ill-fated palace ! As its queen, 
overwhelmed with insults, outraged in every senti- 
ment of her character as wife and mother, she 
finally left the shadow of its direful portals for 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 149 

the Temple, the Conciergerie, and, at last, the 
scaffold. 

The Empress Josephine, the unfortunate hero- 
ine of one of the fairest romances the world has 
ever read, that shamefully abandoned wife, departed 
from the palace where she had hitherto beheld the 
world cringing at her feet, to fly and hide her 
shame and mortification in the solitudes of Mal- 
maison. Another archduchess came to us. Marie- 
Louise traversed for a while the spacious salons of 
the Tuileries ; then a tempest whirled her from her 
high position and sent her to die with her son in the 
bitter loneliness of exile. 

The Princess Caroline of Naples, Duchesse de 
Berry, that delicate and gracious dauphine who yet 
led a troop of heroes in La Yendee, saw, within the 
short period of a few years, her husband perish be- 
neath the assassin's knife and her son despoiled of 
his birthright. 

The Princesse Helene de Mecklenburg, Du- 
chesse d'Orleans, widowed at thirty of an adoring 
husband who perished miserably " because a pos- 
tilion had dropped his rein," as Alfred de Musset 
says in one of his poetical outbursts — the victim 
of another revolution, was obliged to bring up her 
two children in exile. 



150 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

The white hairs of Marie-Amelie could not pre- 
serve her from the inexorable wheel of Fate. With 
her noble brow adorned by every virtue pertaining 
to a sovereign and mother, she seemed, above all 
others, qualified to keep her place upon the throne 
until death should deprive her of it ; and yet, when 
nearly a septuagenarian, she too was driven from her 
country. In her exile at Claremont she became the 
support of a stricken and enfeebled husband, and 
her tender care and sympathy enveloped the last 
days of Louis-Philippe with all the comfort and 
consolation which a tender Christian soul could be- 
stow. 

And lastly the Empress Eugenie. Each of 
these ill-fated names evokes a bloody epoch, where- 
in the most dissimilar destinies have met upon a 
common ground of misfortune. Were the tears 
shed by all these princesses a necessary and natural 
expiation, or did the mysterious and baleful spirit 
of Catherine de Medicis, the founder of the Tuile- 
ries, attach a strange and ill-omened fatality to the 
stones of this palace ? 

The Tuileries is destroyed. Nothing now re- 
mains of that wondrous chef-d/ceuvre of Jean Bul- 
lant and Philibert Delorme which was so enriched 
and adorned by the succession of kings who occu- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 151 

pied it from the time of its foundation. A mourn- 
ful group of graceful, weeping figures hovers about 
and immortalizes the memory of this palace, of this 
shrine of innumerable marvels of human genius, 
and glories in the destruction which overtook it in 
the midst of a flood of outrages worthy of a savage 
people, and whose atrocities caused a civilized world 
to shudder with horror. 

The bed-chamber of the Empress was very dif- 
ferent in character from the rest of her private 
apartments, whose luxury and elegance yet bore 
the stamp of her individuality. This was unmistak- 
ably the chamber of royalty ; a vast chamber of 
state, spacious and stately beneath its heavily gilded 
moldings which served to frame ancient allegorical 
paintings. The bed, with its costly hangings ele- 
vated upon a raised platform, seemed rather a sort 
of throne erected for the purpose of receiving the 
homage of a people glorying in the birth of a royal 
heir, than an asylum of rest. Surely one could not 
sleep there as sweetly as beneath the curtains of a 
humble couch ! 

The Empress never sat in her sleeping-apart- 
ment. There one could see the vase, sent by his 
Holiness Pope Pius IX. to the Empress upon the 
birth of the Prince Imperial, whose godfather he 



152 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

was, the Queen of Sweden being godmother. In a 
golden vase stood a somewhat elongated bouquet, 
much like those which are used for the decoration 
of altars, composed of finely wrought golden flowers 
and leaves. It was the symbolical arid blessed gift 
which the Sovereign Pontiff was in the habit of 
sending to his godchildren upon the occasion of 
their baptism and which represented many indul- 
gences. Every year on Palm Sunday the Empress 
received from the Holy Father at Pome a palm- 
branch blessed by him, which was hung at the head 
of her bed. 

In 1868, finding herself somewhat cramped for 
room in her study, which she enjoyed above all her 
other apartments, the Empress moved the appoint- 
ments of her dressing-room to her bed-chamber and 
turned the former into a most enchanting salon 
much more commodious than her study and adorned 
with all the artistic beauty of modern taste and 
skill. 

Exceedingly few persons ever crossed the 
threshold of this asylum, which the Empress, feel- 
ing an increasing need of retirement and already be- 
ginning to hear the dread mutterings of impending 
disaster, had enjoyed converting into a most deli- 
cious retreat. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 153 

In his " Souvenirs d'un Officier d'Ordonnance," 
M. d'Herisson speaks of the Empress's apartments, 
of which he evidently made a hasty survey, and of 
which he apparently did not retain a very flattering 
impression. 

On the 4th of September these apartments, as 
was usually the case in the absence of the Empress, 
were enveloped in hangings and coverings of lilac 
chintz in order to preserve their freshness ; the 
pictures and ornaments were all covered, and all the 
little articles of personal use, which give a home- 
like aspect and charm to the rooms of house or pal- 
ace, had been removed. 

When war was declared the household was at 
Saint-Cloud, and it was from Saint-Cloud that the 
Emperor departed. At the news of the first defeats 
the Empress returned in great haste to the Tuileries, 
and so occupied was she with graver concerns that 
she never thought to order the removal of the cov- 
erings. Therefore, M. d'Herisson only saw a sort of 
suite of lumber-rooms rendered especially unattract- 
ive "by the harsh, glaring quality of the chintz, 
which now has gone out of use, but which was then 
selected because its glaze shed the dust. It was 
certainly a singular upholstery for a palace, and 
doubtless explains the unfavorable impression which 



154 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

he received. The only explanation of the idea 
which he retained and promulgated concerning the 
bad taste displayed in the Empress's apartments lies 
in the fact that he never really saw them. 

Above her Majesty's suite were some exceed- 
ingly low chambers looking out upon the garden, 
whose tiny little windows, square as loop-holes, pre- 
sented, above the elegant colonnade of the palace, 
a sufficiently odd appearance. Here were situated 
the very comfortable rooms of Mme. Pollet and 
the women of the household ; here also was kept 
her Majesty's wardrobe. The little private stair- 
case leading from the Emperor's apartments led 
thither and had no other communication with the 
rest of the palace. 

The rooms containing the Empress's wardrobe 
and the suite belonging to Mme. Pollet had another 
outlet upon a different staircase. Great oaken 
chests ran the entire length of these chambers, and 
contained the Empress's dresses, linen, hats, bonnets, 
and, in fact, nearly all her apparel. 

There has been a great deal of hot indignation 
and exaggeration wasted upon her Majesty's extrav- 
agant fondness for luxury and dress ; but luxury is 
the necessary appanage of royalty, and a taste fo^ 
dress is the natural privilege of cultivated and beau- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 155 

tiful women. Elegance of apparel is of primary 
importance in the appearance of all women, and 
though a sovereign may be accused by petty minds 
of too great variety and richness of attire, the ma- 
jority would find cause for complaint in a lack of 
adornment inconsistent with the taste and require- 
ments of the age. 

It is an incontrovertible fact that the luxury ot 
the wealthy creates the comfort of the poor ; such a 
law is the real sumptuary tax, and one of the first 
principles of political economy. Even as far back 
as the time of Saint-Louis, princes encouraged lux- 
ury and display in order to help the sale of the 
various industries and to furnish employment to the 
great class of artisans and working-people. The 
distance between the simple truth and the popular 
impression that the Empress never wore the same 
robe twice, that every day gave rise to a new ca- 
price, and that her time was spent in frivolous oc- 
cupations, was a wide one. 

In her private life at the Tuileries, as well as 
elsewhere, the Empress dressed most simply, with 
much less elegance than most young women of the 
present day display in their own homes. Her 
ordinary attire was black silk or cloth, made plainly 
and with little trimming. When she drove out in 



156 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Paris she added a very handsome mantle and a 
pretty, becoming bonnet or hat ; and those who saw 
her pass in her carriage drawn by four horses, with 
its two little jockeys in perfectly correct livery, pre- 
ceded by an outrider in the imperial livery, might 
have imagined her magnificently arrayed, whereas 
in reality she preferred, like all really sensible 
women, to dress in a practical and comfortable man- 
ner. It was thus that I always saw her attired. 

However, the fashion in the early days of the 
empire was a most singular and striking one. Fash- 
ionable women of to-day, who sheathe their slender 
limbs in straight, scant draperies, would shudder in 
"horror at the thought of enveloping themselves in 
such voluminous widths of material, outspread upon 
the huge steel cages whose proportions scarcely 
admitted of three women sitting at ease in a medi- 
um-sized boudoir. These skirts were decorated 
with innumerable flounces, fringes, laces, and ruch- 
ings, all ending in an immense train, which it re- 
quired the greatest skill to manage in the crowded 
salons. It was a commingling of all styles. Dra- 
peries a la grecque were disposed upon paniers of 
Louis XYI.'s time, and the oasquines of the Ama- 
zons of La Fronde were supplemented by the 
flowing sleeves of the Renaissance. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 157 

This oddly assorted toilet perhaps made it more 
difficult to appear charming then than now, when 
the style is adapted to heighten all the natural 
charms of its votaries, and it required all the grace 
which proceeds from perfection of form and habit 
of observation to cope with the difficulties which 
impeded an easy carriage, a gliding gait, and free- 
dom of movement. It is only necessary to glance at 
the engravings of that day to appreciate this; it 
needs but a slight accentuation of feature to make 
actual caricatures of the persons therein portrayed. 
Distinction of manner and bearing, that elegant 
quality of breeding that we so seldom remark nowa- 
days, established an absolute line of caste among 
the different social classes. 

From childhood young girls of high birth were 
taught a certain dignity of movement, a refinement 
of speech and gesture, which prohibited all vulgar- 
ity of appearance, and created what is called the 
heritage of birth — which is, in fact, nothing but a 
clever feat performed by good taste. I speak of an 
epoch far remote from the present. 

Feminine skill and tact had to be well developed 
to bear a woman successfully through the ordeal 
imposed by such an absurd fashion. To walk, en- 
cumbered by this vast amplitude of dress which im- 
11 



158 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

peded every movement, was anything but easy, 
while the slender bust, placed in the midst of these 
far- spreading billows, seemed to have no connection 
with the rest of the body ; to sit down and retain 
the proper adjustment of all the mutinous flounces 
and furbelows was an almost miraculous feat of pre- 
cision ; to mount into a vehicle without crushing 
the masses of light and airy tissues, at a time when 
almost all evening toilets were made of tulle and 
lace, was a work of time exacting much patience on 
the part of horses, husbands, and fathers, the good- 
nature of the two latter classes of individuals being 
severely tested en route, when the slightest move- 
ment on their parts might be followed with the 
most disastrous consequences to their companion's 
toilet. As to traveling, lying down, embracing 
one's children, or even taking their hands in walk- 
ing, these were problems beyond solution. 

It was from this time that the custom, so old- 
fashioned nowadays, of taking a gentleman's arm in 
the street or salon began to fall into desuetude. 

Hats were high pyramids covered with flowers 
and fruit, whose dimensions were out of all propor- 
tion to the sizes of the heads they adorned. 

Worth finally released grace from its imprison- 
ment within the bounds of the crinoline, and women 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 159 

of all grades and stations, even those of the peasant- 
ry, owe him a debt of gratitude for delivering them 
from a tyranny that enslaved a whole generation. 
To the artistic taste of the great milliner, to his 
intuitive perception of aesthetic elegance, we owe 
the restoration of grace of attire. Armed with au- 
thority, he modified the amplitude of skirts, soft- 
ened the quality of their fabric, and restored the 
female body to its original contour by gradual 
changes until, when I arrived at the court, in 
1864, only the smallest hoops were used to sus- 
tain the trains, while in the morning straight, nar- 
row skirts permitted one to pursue her avocations 
or to walk in the streets without being hampered 
with the fear of the direful catastrophes which fre- 
quently attended the most careful manipulation of 
those horrible beli-like hoops. 

In her turn, Mme. Yirot transformed the bon- 
nets. She released the neck by suppressing the 
ugly frills which fell from the edge of the bonnet 
and shrouded the shoulders. Bonnets then became 
small capotes with strings, which showed the hair 
and framed the face most gracefully. 

"Worth and Yirot have often been the collabora- 
tors of our most celebrated artists, and in the beau- 
tiful busts and portraits of that day we can distin- 



160 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

guish the evidences of their talent mingled with the 
genius of the masters. 

At evening entertainments wreaths of flowers 
added a poetic charm to fair young faces. Women 
of mature age contented themselves with jewels, 
save in some exceptional cases where, like Mme. de 
Wagner, they preserved an eternal freshness of 
heart. I had the pleasure, on the occasion of a 
grand ball, of seeing the latter appear in a white 
tulle dress, garnished with bunches of red ribbons 
and crowned, like Ophelia, with a wreath of white 
roses. She was at the time seventy-two and was 
beaming with gayety. The Empress was terribly 
chagrined at her appearance, and avoided looking at 
her throughout the whole evening. 

Twice a year the Empress looked over her ward- 
robe and gave most of the dresses she had worn to 
her women. This was a considerable source of 
profit to them. They generally sold them in Amer- 
ica, where, it appears, it is the custom in certain 
circles of society for the women to hire their toilets, 
which are refitted to the figure for one evening's 
wearing, and which therefore undergo many and 
frequent alterations. 

In the chambers belonging to her wardrobe, the 
Empress had established a seamstress, who frequently 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 161 

fashioned after her directions some of the most ex- 
quisite and becoming dresses her Majesty wore. At 
the beginning of each season the Empress received 
her trades people, who submitted to her their wares 
and fashions. She selected the number of toilets 
she thought requisite, tried them on, and gave them 
no further consideration, unless some unforeseen 
circumstance occurred. 

At dinner in the evening the Empress was al- 
ways decolletee. When she was en jpetit comite in 
the winter she usually wore a long dress of dark 
velvet or of plain white satin relieved by jewels, 
among which was ever present the emerald clover- 
leaf, her first present from the Emperor. She loved 
simplicity, which was most becoming to her. 

But reasons of state control sovereigns even in 
their choice of attire, and the Empress was often 
obliged to wear heavy Lyons fabrics in order to en- 
courage the silk manufacture, and to adorn herself 
with passementeries, laces, etc., so that the world 
should be influenced to patronize these various in- 
dustries — these her Majesty called her political 
toilets. 

Her foot was wonderfully small, and the shoes 
which fitted her were only adapted to children's 
wear. They were generally sent to the Asylum 



162 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Eugene-Napoleon, where the Empress supported, at 
her own expense, three hundred orphans chosen 
from the poor children of Paris. The tinj white 
slippers of the sovereign served to adorn the feet of 
the little ones at their first communion. 

The city of Paris had offered the Empress, on 
the occasion of her marriage, a necklace of great 
value; but through a motive of pure generosity 
and benevolence her Majesty had refused the 
gift, asking the city to consecrate its price to some 
work which should benefit the Parisian people. 
"With the price of this necklace the Empress founded 
the Asylum Eugene-Napoleon ; but with delicate 
forethought and in order to show her appreciation 
of the gift offered her, she directed the architect 
charged with its construction to give the building 
the form of a necklace. Therefore in its oval shape 
and outlying pavilions the plan of the edifice does 
indeed resemble a necklace with pendants, as it 
would lie on a person's neck. 

The Empress herself superintended the manage- 
ment of this house, which was admirably conducted 
by nuns. The children were excellently well cared 
for, each receiving a certain amount of instruction 
and being taught some manual occupation. Some 
learned to embroider, some to make artificial flow- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 163 

ers, and others to design ; the least intelligent could 
learn sewing and laundry work ; all were taught 
how to manage a modest household, and at the age 
of twenty-one each received a complete trousseau, 
the result of her own work, and a small dowry 
which would enable her either to marry or establish 
herself, according to her own desire. 

The Empress supported this institution at her 
own expense ; she had even contracted an insurance 
of two million and a half francs upon her life, that 
she might leave after her death sufficient funds to 
carry on the beautiful charity. The superior, a 
most distinguished and intelligent woman, came 
frequently to see the Empress, and kept her fully 
informed regarding the institution. Her Majesty 
often went in person to visit her orphanage, and 
sometimes, as a great reward, some of the best be- 
haved of the young girls were permitted to come to 
the Tuileries and help in the sewing. 

At the time of the legislative elections in 1869, 
the Empress, while receiving a visit from the 
mother superior, endeavored to inform herself dur- 
ing the conversation regarding the disposition of 
the population of the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, 
within whose precincts the asylum w T as situated, 
and which contributed a large number of children 



164 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

to its care, and sought to discover how the people 
there were inclined to vote. Unfortunately, the 
good nun had not a single political idea, as she 
never even glanced at a newspaper. On leaving the 
Tuileries, greatly perplexed by the questions her 
Majesty had put to her, she pondered within her- 
self how she might find means of answering them, 
she vaguely understanding that a deputy might be 
nominated inimical to the Emperor's interests. In 
order to aid in solving the difficulty she decided to 
buy a journal, a proceeding somewhat at variance 
with the rules of her order. Hardly had she 
glanced at the sheet than she hurried back to the 
Tuileries in the greatest agitation, insisting that she 
must see the Empress at once on most urgent and 
important business. The poor woman had bought 
M. Eochefort's paper and, having read one of the 
most violent of the articles inspired by the prospect 
of the coming election, she imagined that she had 
discovered a plot against the Emperor. 

At the time of the siege of Paris all these chil- 
dren were employed in sewing sacks of earth, de- 
signed to arm the fortifications. During the Com- 
mune, the nuns, who had up to that time been 
enabled to protect their little ones, received a visit 
from the delegates of the National Defense, who 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 165 

ordered them to abandon the institution. They 
were obliged to depart and, notwithstanding all 
their entreaties, were only permitted to take with 
them the youngest members of their flock, the com- 
munists desiring to retain possession of the older 
ones. 

As soon as the troops re-entered Paris, the moth- 
er superior hastened to the asylum to try and dis- 
cover what had become of her children. The 
drunken insurgents had made a place of debauch of 
the sacred precincts consecrated to the purity and 
innocence of childhood, and had attainted the un- 
happy little ones whom they had retained with 
the most horrible diseases. The good nuns re- 
turned to their work, gathered together their dese- 
crated flock, comforted, relieved, and cared for them. 
Some of these unfortunate little creatures who be- 
came mothers were themselves scarce more than 
children ; and yet they were not the daughters of 
duchesses whom the communists subjected to this 
ontrage. 

Few persons have been associated with the Em- 
press throughout her whole life, but among those 
of a lower grade who have had that privilege Mme. 
Pollet occupies a prominent place — perhaps chiefly 
on account of the secret influence attributed to her. 



166 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

She was blindly devoted to her Majesty, and hav- 
ing entered her service in Spain at a very early age, 
had continued with her after her marriage, thanks 
to the Empress's kindness and to that of an officer 
of infantry, M. Pollet, who became interested in 
her. Upon her marriage she had received the title 
of treasurer to her Majesty. She was a delicate, 
fragile little woman of feeble health, who always be- 
lieved herself at the point of death and who lived 
by a strict regimen. She was the only Spaniard in 
the Empress's service, and spoke French with such a 
singular accent that it was necessary to become ac- 
customed to her speech before understanding it. 
She was keen and sharp-witted without being re- 
markably intelligent, and notwithstanding her hum- 
ble origin she was not in the least common in man- 
ner or appearance, and was very clever in guarding 
her own interests. 

Her old attachment for the Empress in some 
sort excused and accounted for her jealousy of any 
encroachments upon her prerogatives : — a marked 
fault in her character for which her Majesty 
often reproved her, the Empress having no sym- 
pathy or patience with domestic quarrels. She 
was the most timid and weak-minded person whom 
I ever met. It was only necessary to remark care- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 167 

lessly in a brilliantly lighted room, tenanted by 
several persons, " That curtain is moving," to 
make her tremble and turn pale ; while if the Em- 
press added, " Go, Pepa, and see what is behind 
the curtain," she could only bring herself to obey 
with the greatest reluctance, showing meanwhile 
such demonstrations of terror that her Majesty 
would be fairly convulsed with laughter. She pos- 
sessed an awful fear of revolutions, and dreamed 
of nothing but pillage and murder, yet I verily 
believe she would have sacrificed her life for the 
Empress without the slightest hesitation, and know- 
ing this her Majesty loved to have her near her. 

She kept all the private accounts, was the me- 
dium of communication between the Empress and 
her trades-people, and maintained a close and strict 
watch on the women of the household. She was 
sometimes pretty sharp and severe with them, but, 
ever active and restless, she was far kinder and 
more lenient St bottom than her speech and actions 
testified. Moreover, the gentleness of the Empress, 
who always addressed her people in the kindest 
tones and interested herself warmly in their wel- 
fare, more than compensated for Mme. Pollet's 
disagreeable qualities. 

Mme. Pollet assisted at her Majesty's toilet 



168 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

and received her daily orders, besides having charge 
of the Empress's personal jewels — for the crown 
jewels, which were only worn on state occasions, 
were kept at the treasury, whence M. Bure, his 
Majesty's treasurer, w T as alone permitted to remove 
them at the Empress's instigation. 

The contents of the Empress's private jewel- 
casket were exceedingly valuable, numbering 
among other things a pair of ear-rings which had 
belonged to Marie- Antoinette, each of which was 
composed of three great pear-shaped diamonds. 
The Emperor had purchased them for her at the 
time of their marriage, together with a necklace of 
incomparably beautiful pearls, and diadems and 
necklaces of brilliants. The Empress also possessed 
for ordinary occasions other valuable pearls and 
jewels which had been heirlooms in her own 
family. 

Besides these, Mme. Pollet had the care of her 
Majesty's laces, fans, and, in a word, of all the per- 
sonal belongings of the Empress. Everything was 
kept by her in the most perfect order, so perfect, 
indeed, that it was often difficult to obtain of her 
what was required. 

While Cabanel was painting his admirable por- 
trait of the Emperor— -that wonderfully exact and 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 169 

lifelike resemblance which is by far the best coun- 
terfeit presentment of his Majesty in existence — he 
worked at the Tuileries in a large atelier which had 
been especially designed for the use of artists who 
might be engaged in similar undertakings. The 
Emperor posed in evening costume of black silk 
hose and knee-breeches, with a black coat crossed 
by the cord of the Legion of Honor. Cabanel de- 
sired to incorporate the symbols of royalty in the 
picture, and the Empress directed him to apply to 
Mme. Pollet for the needed accessories. He there- 
fore wrote a note asking her for the " Hand of Jus- 
tice," which he wished to paint in conjunction with 
the scepter and crown. This note threw her into 
the greatest agitation. 

" He asks me for the ' Hand of Justice ' I " she 
cried, with her peculiar accent. " No, no, indeed, 
I won't give him the ' Hand of J ustice.' Tell him 
that I won't give it him." Then, turning to me, 
she asked in a somewhat calmer tone, " But what is 
this ' Hand of Justice ' that he wants?" 

I explained to her that it was a decoration, at 
which she confessed that she had thought it some 
high position in the magistracy, and that she was 
determined not to make such a request of her Ma- 
jesty. 



170 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

It was foolishly believed that Mme. Pollet exer- 
cised great influence over the Empress, and the tra- 
ditionary power of the Spanish camarillas was at- 
tributed to her. Persons of high social standing 
and those of distinguished rank in the Emperor's 
service actually paid court to her ; wives of minis- 
ters, generals, and diplomats loaded her with atten- 
tions and presents ; all of which she accepted equal- 
ly with the gratuities offered her by tradesmen 
anxious to obtain the Empress's patronage. But 
her influence with her Majesty was absolutely nil, 
and as her one thought and aim was to please 
her mistress, who ever kept her in a subordinate 
position, she carefully refrained from taking the 
liberty of chattering to her of any extraneous 
matters and thus risking the Empress's displeas- 
ure. 

Observing the friendly and familiar manner in 
which she was treated by persons of distinction, she 
long cherished a secret hope of being admitted to 
the state receptions, but the Empress would not 
hear of it. Finally, however, when her husband, 
M. Pollet, who was an excellent officer, was raised 
in 1869 to the grade of colonel, she succeeded in 
securing the right, as a colonel's wife, of appearing 
at some state fetes. Her husband died suddenly 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 171 

about the time of the war, and she followed the 
Empress to England. 

During her sojourn there she never heard that 
any one had arrived from France without believing 
that he had come to announce the restoration of the 
empire. The climate of England did not agree 
with her, and she returned to France to recover her 
health. Here she died alone, and, with the excep- 
tion of some of the servants of the chateau, no one 
who had surrounded her at the Tuileries dreamed 
of following her to the grave. She never had any 
children, and left a very pretty fortune to a sister 
and niece in Spain. 

Besides line. Pollet, the Empress had two tire- 
women in her personal service ; these were two sis- 
ters, Miles. Esther and Maria Bayle, exceedingly 
faithful, intelligent, and presentable women. Their 
father, the old jailer at the fortress of Ham, had 
treated the Emperor with the greatest consideration 
during his captivity, and his Majesty, having be- 
come interested in the old man's daughters, engaged 
them for her Majesty's service at the time of her 
marriage. 

One of them died after an unfortunate marriage, 
leaving several children, and the other, Mile. Es- 
ther, a most excellent and worthy woman, devoted 



172 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

herself to the care of her nephews, finally marry- 
ing, at the close of the war, M. Thelin, who had 
been appointed treasurer to his Majesty on the 
death of M. Bure, the first incumbent. 

The Empress herself arranged this marriage. M. 
Thelin was very well off, but advanced in years and 
in poor health ; and in persuading him to marry 
Mile. Esther Bayle, who was herself no longer 
young, but a most intelligent and experienced per- 
son, her Majesty assured a happy conclusion to the 
life of one of the Emperor's most devoted servants. 

M. Thelin had been with the Emperor during 
his captivity at Ham, and he it was w T ho planned his 
Majesty's escape, utterly unmindful of the conse- 
quences which this event might bring upon himself. 
I have repeatedly heard the details of this affair 
from the Emperor's own lips, as he was always 
most willing to rehearse it. While in confinement 
he was closely watched, and M. Thelin, of all the 
persons surrounding him, was alone permitted to 
go out for the purpose of procuring the articles of 
which his Majesty stood in need. His proceedings 
on these occasions were subjected to the strictest 
surveillance, notwithstanding which he was suffi- 
ciently adroit to arrange a method of releasing the 
Emperor. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 173 

He took advantage of the fact that the fortress 
was undergoing repair and, having won over one of 
the masons engaged in the work, secured a suit of 
the man's clothes and smuggled them in to the Em- 
peror. The change of attire was immediately made, 
and, carrying a plank on his shoulders in such a way 
as to partially conceal his face, his Majesty calmly 
walked out of the citadel without being remarked. 

" I felt so transformed by my dress," said the 
Emperor, " that I did not experience the slightest 
nervousness in passing the different posts until, as I 
was approaching the last sentinel, the pipe which I 
was smoking fell to the ground. This accident 
made a disagreeable impression on me, but rapidly 
reflecting that the position of the pipe upon the 
pavement might attract attention, it being quite con- 
trary to custom for a mason to leave his pipe lying 
about, I stooped and carelessly picked it up." 

M. Thelin, who pretended that he was going on 

some excursion, awaited his Majesty at a given 

point with a post-chaise, and the latter, who had 

taken the precaution to shave his mustache, quickly 

donned an overcoat and hat, while M. Thelin, 

speeding his horse to its utmost, drove him rapidly 

to the frontier. 

This took place at seven o'clock in the morning. 
12 • 



174 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

Meanwhile Dr. Conneau, who also shared the Em- 
peror's captivity at Ham, remained in his Majesty's 
chamber, where the latter was supposed to be suffer- 
ing terribly from one of his frequent headaches and 
trying to gain a little repose after a restless night. 

The governor had received the most severe in- 
junctions concerning his prisoner, and was obliged 
to personally visit him frequently during the day to 
assure himself of the Emperor's presence. He had 
already made several calls of inquiry concerning 
his Majesty, and on each occasion Dr. Conneau had 
partially opened the door and given him a view of 
the soi-disant Prince, who, in the obscurity of the 
chamber, seemed to be peacefully sleeping on the 
bed, having, the doctor said, taken a dose of medi- 
cine. The doctor had cleverly arranged a bolster to 
represent the Prince, and, in order to carry out the 
deception, he had himself courageously swallowed 
the draught. 

Finally, at about one o'clock in the afternoon, 
thinking that the fugitive must be beyond the reach 
of pursuit, the doctor decided to confess all to the 
governor, who was becoming somewhat suspicious of 
so prolonged a slumber and who insisted upon en- 
tering. 

66 The Prince has fled," said Dr. Conneau, " and 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 175 

it is needless for you to endeavor to recapture him. 
He is in safety, else I should tell you nothing. You 
may do what you like with me." 

In fact, the Emperor had crossed the Belgian 
frontier, whence he departed for America. 

The mason who facilitated his Majesty's escape 
by surrendering his clothes to him was named 
Badinguet. He was a workman who . had been 
reared by his father, an old soldier of the grand 
army, in the worship of the " legende JVapoleoni- 
mne" 

The Emperor often jested about this man's name, 
which he knew was sometimes applied to himself 
as a term of derision, though usually people were 
unaware of the origin of the sobriquet. 

" I am not at all annoyed by being called by it," 
he would say laughingly, " for though it is scarcely 
the name for a prince, it is nevertheless that of a 
good man who rendered me a most valuable serv- 
ice." 

On learning of the Emperor's escape, the wife of 
the commandant of the fortress, fearing that the 
event would compromise her husband's position, 
broke into bitter lamentations. 

" Why should he have wanted to escape," she 
cried, " when I gave him such splendid soups ? " 



176 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

She had indeed been most considerate of th<j 
Prince, whose health frequently suffered from con- 
finement. 

The day following that on which Louis Na- 
poleon was elected President for life, the old com- 
mandant of Ham, who was with a regiment at 
Lyons, received an order to report himself immedi- 
ately at Paris ; his wife, greatly agitated by the 
unexpected summons, accompanied him thither. 
The Prince greeted them most affectionately, and 
then announced to the officer that he had appointed 
him governor of the palace of Saint-Cloud. 

" You guarded me so well at Ham," said his 
Majesty, " that I desire you should also care for my 
welfare at Saint-Cloud." Then, turning to the lady, 
he added, " I trust, madame, that you no longer re- 
gret the loss of your soups." 

The Empress, by a singular chance, saw the 
Emperor for the first time in 1840, after the Stras- 
bourg affair. The Comtesse de Montijo and her 
daughters happened to be in Paris at the time, and 
one day went to call upon Mrae. Delessert, wife of 
the prefect of police, who was occupying the Pre- 
fecture with his family. 

It was just after the arrest of the Prince, who, 
having been hurriedly conveyed to Paris, was mo- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 177 

mentarily expected at the Prefecture. Mme. De- 
lessert, having been warned of his coming, stationed 
Mme. de Monti jo and her daughters at a window 
from which they could see the Prince arrive, es- 
corted by an officer of the gendarmerie of excep- 
tionally tall stature. 

The Prince had all the appearance of a man 
who had traveled for several nights and who had 
been unable to effect a change of linen. He left 
Paris on the same day, still escorted by the same 
officer, who treated him with the greatest considera- 
tion. Observing that the Prince was actually suf- 
fering for want of fresh linen, he offered him 
one of his own shirts, which was so long and large 
that the Emperor was completely enveloped in it, 
and, notwithstanding the critical condition in which 
he found himself, his Majesty could not help being 
greatly amused by the incident. 

When, at the termination of his mission, the 
officer was about to take leave of his prisoner, the 
Prince, warmly appreciative of his kindness and at 
a loss to find means of rewarding it, said to him : 

" I have nothing now at my disposal, and yet I 
am most anxious to present you with some souvenir ; 
will you, then, take this lock of my hair ? It is a 
gift which is usually only bestowed upon one's mis- 



178 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

tress, but keep it to remember me by — perhaps it 
will bring you good luck." 

Immediately upon Lis accession to power the 
Emperor rewarded the officer's kindness by making 
him governor of the Palace de l'Elysee. 

At the time of this incident the Empress was 
scarcely fourteen. How little any one then sup- 
posed that that prisoner and that young child were 
destined to one day reign together over a great 
country ! 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 179 



VIL 

Dinner at the Tuileries was served at lialf-past 
seven. All those who comprised the service of 
honor to their Majesties assembled a little before 
that hour in the Salon cPApoMon, out of which 
opened the blue and rose salons of the Empress. 

This salon was one of great magnificence, highly 
decorated with mythological paintings. The wall 
at the back represented Apollo seated upon Olym- 
pus, surrounded by the nine Muses ; upon the very 
high-studded ceiling was painted, upon a golden 
background, the chariot of the sun and the other 
attributes peculiar to the god of day and art. 

It was brilliantly illuminated by three great chan- 
deliers filled with candles, as well as by lamps and 
candelabra. 

The Salon oVApollon was situated between the 
white salon, or the Salon du Premier Consul — 
thus named because of its color and the portraits of 
General Bonaparte which decorated it — and the 



180 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

throne-room, which it was necessary to cross in or- 
der to reach the salon of Lonis XI V., which was 
used as a dining-room. 

The furniture of the Salon cPAjpollon was 
of gilded wood in the Louis XIV. style, uphol- 
stered in red and white figured satin to match the 
curtains. Consoles, a grand piano, a huge oblong 
table surrounded by slender chairs, and modern ar- 
ticles of furniture covered with different materials 
completed the furnishing of the apartment. In the 
center stood an immense round sofa, a sort of mon- 
strous ottoman, which supported a jardiniere filled 
with flowers. Yery often of an evening the Prince 
Imperial and his young friends would use this otto- 
man for a seat of combat, and no children of their 
age were ever more joyous and noisy than they. 

The persons comprising the daily service of 
honor were the two ladies in waiting to her Majesty, 
a general, aide-de-camp to the Emperor — occasionally 
his Majesty admitted colonels as his aides-de-camp, 
but it was a most infrequent occurrence — their Ma- 
jesties' chamberlains and equerries, the prefect of 
the palace, and two officers of ordnance chosen from 
among the most distinguished members of the dif- 
ferent corps of the army. In case they were not 
personally known to him the Emperor always se- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 181 

lected these officers by referring to their records. 
The j were of the grade of captain, and, after pass- 
ing two or three years in the Emperor's household, 
left with promotion to return to their regiments. 

Every day the officer on duty, who commanded 
the guard at the Tuileries, was invited to dine with 
their Majesties, and as the garrison of Paris was 
very numerous it rarely happened that the same 
man came twice. It was a most embarrassing po- 
sition for many of these officers to be thus brought 
into familiar contact with their sovereign, utterly 
unacquainted, as they usually were, with any one 
present. Their Majesties rarely failed to appreciate 
their situation and address some kindly remark to 
them. 

General Kolin, ad jutant - general of Paris, sat 
opposite the Emperor at table. His duty it was to 
direct, superintend, and control everything in the 
service of the palace. He lived at the Tuileries, 
occupying the ground floor of the Pavilion de 
Marsan on the Rue de Rivoli. 

The Emperor presented himself in the Em- 
press's apartments at a little before half-past seven, 
and they entered the salon together, accompanied 
by the Prince Imperial, who had been admitted to 
the Emperor's dining-table at eight years of age ; 



182 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

he generally held the Empress by the hand. As 
she entered, her Majesty never failed to salute the 
persons assembled there, and whom she saw every 
day, with the same smiling grace which she would 
have employed on an occasion of state. 

When dinner was served, one of the maitres 
(P hotel announced the fact to the prefect of the pal- 
ace, who approached his Majesty and bowed pro- 
foundly and silently ; the Emperor then gave his 
arm to the Empress, the aide-de-camp and chamber- 
lain of his Majesty offered theirs to the ladies in 
waiting, and, with the prefect of the palace pre- 
ceding his Majesty, the procession passed to the 
table. 

This little ceremonial was most simply and natu- 
rally performed. In all the daily exercises of court 
etiquette the charming and courteous kindliness of 
their Majesties' manners quite effaced the stiffness 
of formality, and beneath the veil of deference paid 
them one could easily detect the profound respect 
and esteem in which they were held. 

The Emperor and Empress sat next each other 
at table, with the Prince Imperial on his Majesty's 
left, the aide-de-camp being on the left of the Em- 
press ; the first lady in waiting was at General Ho- 
lm's right hand," opposite the Emperor; I sat on 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 183 

the other side of the general, and the rest placed 
themselves according to their fancy. 

Before my arrival at the Tnileries there had 
been thirteen at table, and more than one supersti- 
tious soul hailed my coming as a means of obviating 
the daily temptation to Fate. The table was adorned 
by a huge silver ejpergne filled with flowers, together 
with great silver candelabra and elegant vases also 
containing rare blossoms. The service was of plate, 
and the rims of the dishes were decorated with the 
imperial arms. 

The Empress thought that more of these speci- 
mens of the silversmith's art would have escaped 
destruction if they had not been composed of the 
precious metal which is too often melted down into 
money at time of need. On occasions of ceremony 
we were served off silver-gilt, a most enchanting 
service of old Sevres being used at dessert. 

The food was of the rarest and most tempting 
description. During nearly the whole year we had 
strawberries, peaches, and green peas, raised under 
glass in the gardens at Versailles. There were usu- 
ally four double courses — that is, two soups, two re- 
ley es, four entrees, two roasts, etc. The wines were of 
the choicest quality, and the service was so promptly 
rendered, with such perfect system and smoothness, 



184 RECOXLECTIONS OF TEE 

that it frequently aroused the admiration of foreign 
princes. Even at the most elaborate repast we were 
never longer than three quarters of an hour at 
table. 

M. Dupuis, the chief of the table service, dressed 
in black, personally superintended everything. Be- 
hind the Emperor stood one of his ushers, as also 
behind the Prince Imperial ; they wore the light- 
brown coat of the Freneh livery. Behind the Em- 
press, together with M. Bignet, her chief usher, 
stood a young negro, as black as ebony, named Scan- 
der, who had been brought from Egypt, and who, 
superbly dressed, after the fashion of the negroes 
whom one sees in Paul Veronese's picture of the 
" Marriage at Can a," made a most effective bit of 
decoration. He presented the various dishes to the 
Empress with as lofty an air as if he were fulfilling 
one of the most dignified duties of life. He pre- 
tended to be the descendant of a great race, and ut- 
terly refused to obey any one but her Majesty. 

He was terribly lazy, and was most difficult to 
manage. One day he swaggered forth into the 
public garden of the Tuileries, where he amused 
himself by following a strange gentleman, copying 
his gait and gestures. "When the stranger finally 
perceived him, he commanded him to cease his an- 



COURT OF TEE TUILEEIES. 185 

tics ; but far from obeying hiin, Scander continued, 
even going so far as to bestow upon bis victim a 
kick, aimed most irreverently. The indignant 
stranger turned upon tbe insolent page, wbom he 
seized by the ear, and showered with blows from 
his cane. Furious, but every inch a coward, Scan- 
der burst into the most terrific screams, crying: 

" I am the Empress's boy ; let me go, or I will 
have vou buna: ! " 

At last the keepers, who knew him well, came 
to his relief, and he was sent back to the Tuileries 
in a pitiable condition. He anticipated a very dif- 
ferent greeting from that which he received, and, to 
his great chagrin, .was obliged to make an apology 
that was extremely humiliating to his pride. 

Among the officers of his Majesty's table service 
was a most worthy man named Sauton, who was 
forced to leave the Tuileries under the most joainful 
circumstances. For some time the newspapers had 
been publishing at intervals various articles con- 
cerning certain greatly distorted incidents which, 
harmless in themselves, had been so cleverly magni- 
fied and travestied that they were excellently well 
calculated to shock and influence public opinion. 

All the persons composing the service at the 
Tuileries merited the most perfect confidence, and 



186 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

it was impossible to imagine who could be guilty of 
these miserable indiscretions. Finally, this man 
confessed to General Rolin that he had remarked 
that these ljing articles coincided with the visits 
paid him by his son, M. Georges Sauton. 

This young fellow, who owed his education to 
the Emperor's benevolence, had entered the career 
of journalism, and, taking advantage of his father's 
simplicity and confidence, had extracted from him 
various incidents of the private life at the palace, 
which he had afterward embellished and altered to 
suit the interests of his paper. 

The poor father, utterly above suspicion, was 
terribly grieved and shocked by his son's abomina- 
able conduct, and resigned his position at the Tu> 
ileries, where his absence was keenly regretted. 
The Emperor bestowed a pension upon him, but 
he died shortly after. 

The kitchens were in the basement, and the 
courses were sent up on dumb-waiters situated be- 
hind the Gdlerie de Diane. It required a wonder- 
ful promptness and dispatch on the part of the serv- 
ants to prevent the dishes from suffering from such 
lengthy transportation. 

"With the exception of the table, which occupied 
the middle of the apartment, and which during the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 187 

day was covered by a cloth, there was nothing 
about the arrangement of the Louis XIV. salon to 
show that it was used as a dining-room. Large 
screens were employed during the repast to shut off 
the coming and going of the servants, and to con- 
ceal the side-tables used to hold the various dishes 
and for carving ; all of these disappeared imme- 
diately upon the conclusion of the meal, and the 
salon at once resumed its customary air of palatial 
magnificence. 

The mantel was decorated with a sculptured 
bust of Louis XIY., and the portrait of the King in 
his blue mantle, painted by Lebrun, hung between 
the windows. On the opposite panel was sus- 
pended the painting representing the presentation 
of the Due d' Anjou to the Spanish ambassadors ; 
opposite the mantel was a portrait of Anne of Aus- 
tria with the King beside her, dressed as a child, 
with the royal mantle over his little shoulders, 
while on her knees she held her second son, the 
Due d' Orleans, in short skirts, and wearing on his 
head the great three -storied cap, such as country 
children then wore, made of the richest materials, 
and decorated with a long, curling feather, which 
fell to his shoulder. 

Usually not more than thirty or forty persons 



188 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

dined here, the most numerous party I ever saw 
assembled at table being on the occasion of a dinner 
which the Empress gave in payment of a bet lost to 
the Emperor. The stake was of an indeterminate 
character, to be paid at the loser's discretion, and 
her Majesty thought she would surprise the Em- 
peror by giving a dinner to the twenty prettiest 
women in the capital. It would have puzzled the 
gallant Paris himself to have awarded the prize on 
this occasion. The names, which have all acquired 
a wide renown, were as follows : 

Princesse Anna Murat, Duchesse. de Mouchy, 
fairly dazzling in her freshness and grace, with her 
beautiful Napoleonic profile; the Comtesse de 
Pourtales, whose exquisite loveliness even old Time 
himself respected ; the Marquise de Gallifet, whose 
blonde beauty was positively angelic; the Mare- 
chale Canrobert, who, beneath her dark tresses, re- 
sembled in hauteur and dignity the aristocratic 
heroines of "Walter Scott's novels ; Mme. la Baronne 
Alphonse de Rothschild, with her large Oriental 
eyes, her regular features, and the brilliant com- 
plexion, which was even more delicate than the tint 
of the regal pearls which adorned her; the Mar- 
quise de Chasseloup-Laubat, with her fascinating 
Creole languor and dreaminess ; the Baronne de 



GOURT OF THE TUILEBIES. . 189 

Pierrebourg, whose two adorable daughters, seem- 
ing more like her sisters, remind one to-day of their 
mother's beauty ; the Duchesse de Moray ; the 
Duchesse de Persigny ; the Comtesse de "Walewska ; 
the Duchesse de Cadore ; the Baronne Philippe de 
Bourgoing; the Duchesse de Montmorency, that 
irresistible young woman whose memory awakens 
within the minds of all who knew her such regret 
and admiration; her young sister-in-law, the Mar- 
quise de las Marismas, with her ever lovely expres- 
sion ; the Comtesse de Montebello, sweet and charm- 
ing, with her niece, the Marquise de Cainzy, lately 
married, and who was then a very beautiful young 
brunette, with immense blue eyes ; Mme. Leopold 
Magnan, a classic beauty, realizing the ideal type of 
the vestal virgins ; Mme. Bartoloni, whose some- 
what severe style was redeemed from coldness by 
the animation of a most brilliant mind ; and finally 
the Princesse de Metternich, who well merited a 
prominent rank among the most attractive. 

I was fortunate enough to be on duty that day. 
I remember that the Princesse de Metternich had 
for left-hand neighbor an officer in waiting, an old 
member of the staff of the gendarmerie of the 
guard, who, in order to show his deep respect and 

admiration for his fair companion, constantly of- 
13 



190 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

fered to drink with her, which was of course a con- 
tinual interruption to the princess's conversation 
and which finally succeeded in greatly annoying her. 

" Thank you, no," she kept replying, without, 
however, producing the desired effect. At last, de- 
termined to resort to desperate measures, she turned 
to him with her most gracious smile, and said : 

" Pardon me, monsieur, but I have a strange 
peculiarity of temperament. Can you believe that 
every time any one offers to drink wine with me it 
creates in me a desire to weep ? Just imagine how 
annoying such an exhibition on my part would be 
here ! " 

By this little stratagem she secured the privilege 
of finishing her repast without being constantly 
called upon to bow her acknowledgments of the 
officer's courtesies. 

The Empress loved to see beautiful faces about 
her and, contrary to the accepted idea of the value 
of contrasts, this reunion of unrivaled beauties 
seemed to need no foil of ugliness, as the variety of 
types was amply sufficient to bring out the full 
merit of each. 

This gracious caprice of her Majesty was a most 
pronounced success. Nothing could have been 
more charming than that group of young, beautiful, 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 191 

and highly distinguished women, all magnificently 
appareled, and framed in the sumptuous setting of 
the apartment. 

After the repast we generally repaired to the 
Salon d' Apollon, where coffee was served, which 
the Emperor took standing, smoking meanwhile his 
favorite cigarettes. It was then, usually, that his 
Majesty conversed a few minutes with the officer of 
the guard. It was contrary to etiquette for any 
one to sit without permission while the Emperor 
was standing, but he never failed on ordinary occa- 
sions to request the ladies present to be seated, 
when we all gathered about the tables and the con- 
versation became general, the company discussing 
either the events of the day or subjects interesting 
to the various tastes. 

Most of the men attached to the civil household 
of the Emperor and Empress belonged to the Cham- 
ber of Deputies. The Marquis d' Ha vrin court, Ba- 
ron de Pierres, the Due de Trevise, the Comte 
d'Aygues-Yives, the Due de Conegliano, Baron 
Philippe de Bourgoing, the Comte de Cosse-Bris- 
sac, and Baron Zorn de Bulach ; each represented 
his own department. Almost always some of them 
were on duty and had something interesting to re- 
late concerning the occurrences of the Chamber. 



192 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

No conversationalist could have been more 
agreeable than the Empress. She mingled a nat- 
ural gayety and vivacity with a remarkably keen 
power of observation and a dignity of style. She 
possessed the valuable quality of discrimination to- 
gether with a wonderfully retentive memory, and 
was very quick to see the peculiarities in persons 
and things. Above all else she detested anything 
bordering on affectation. She was interested and 
amused by everything, was not afraid of argument, 
and the brightness and originality of her repartee 
gave a distinct charm to all she said. 

Sometimes the Emperor amused himself by 
playing patience with the cards which stood in cases 
on the table, and the Empress often followed his 
example, rather for the purpose of maintaining si- 
lence when she was preoccupied than for the sake of 
diversion. Occasionally, too, a game of loto was 
made up for the Prince Imperial's amusement, when 
the Emperor would present a contribution of rolls 
of new silver fifty- centime pieces, which were used 
for counters and stakes; besides these no other 
games were ever played at the Tuileries. 

At ten o'clock a table was brought in on which 
were served, a VAnglaise, biscuit and tea, which the 
ladies in waiting themselves prepared and distrib- 



COURT OF THE T [TILERIES. 193 

uted. An orange-flower Pekoe which, was dispensed 
on these occasions was especially popular with the 
gentlemen ; in one corner of the salon was also ar- 
ranged a waiter laden with cordials and iced coffee. 
The Emperor usually retired after taking a cup of 
tea. 

The conversation then became more lively, the 
Empress prolonging the evening until nearly half- 
past eleven. I always left the salon with her Ma- 
jesty, who frequently kept me with her while she 
undressed, and often even after she went to bed, 
conversing familiarly with me or listening to ex- 
tracts which I read to her from the papers that 
were sent to the court every day by the Minister of 
the Interior. This was about all the reading I ever 
did for the Empress who, being a rapid and vora- 
cious reader, preferred to inform herself. 

The Empress had no indolent habits and, strange 
as it may seem to most women, did not possess a 
single dressing-gown or robe de chambre. She had 
only linen peignoirs, which she wore while her toilet 
was being made, and dressed herself completely in 
the morning. "When, in 1865, the Prince Imperial 
had the scarlet fever, her Majesty, anxious lest he 
should incur a chill which might result in disastrous 
consequences, determined to pass the nights in his 



194 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

room that she might herself watch over him ; there- 
fore, in order that she should not endure the fatigue 
of watching in a tight dress, it was found necessary 
to procure for her a dressing-gown ready made. 
Being nearly of the same height as her Majesty, I 
went to the shops of the Louvre and bought a red 
flannel wrapper which cost less than a hundred 
francs and which she thought the greatest comfort 
in the world ; she was thus enabled to watch with- 
out unnecessary fatigue. 

The Prince Imperial caught the scarlet fever at 
a masquerade ball at the Tuileries at which he was 
allowed to be present for a little while. He danced a 
quadrille with a very pretty young girl, Mile. Hobin, 
to whom he took a great fancy. The poor child, 
who had been feeling unwell for several days, would 
not give way to her indisposition, fearing that she 
should lose the ball, which she had long been an- 
ticipating. Her mother, while helping to dress her, 
noticed that her shoulders were covered with a rash, 
but Mile. Robin explained its appearance by some 
trifling excuse. She went to the ball and danced 
gayly part of the night ; but on returning to her 
home she was seized with a violent fever, whose 
rapid strides nothing could impede ; the next day 
she was dead. The same flowers that had adorned 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 195 

her ball costume decorated her casket. She was an 
only daughter and but twenty years old, with 
everything in life to live for. 

The Prince Imperial was not the only victim to 
the contagion, as many persons who had conversed 
with the poor girl were also stricken with the 
dread disease. Mme. de Lourmel was one of the 
worst sufferers, her life being at one time de- 
spaired of. 

The Empress's anxiety was legitimate, for the 
malady was of a malignant nature ; but the public, 
which was deeply engrossed with the Prince's ill- 
ness, greatly exaggerated his condition, and, as 
usual, spread the wildest and most alarming reports. 
Dr. Barthez, the Prince's physician, being too greatly 
influenced by the public solicitude, and desiring to 
allay it, injudiciously permitted his patient to take 
a ride on his birthday, the 16th of March. It was 
a premature exposure, for, the weather being very 
cold, the Prince caught a chill, which I have always 
thought sowed the seeds of the serious illness which 
prostrated him the following year, and which threat- 
ened his life, for the scarlet fever left him much 
more delicate than he had formerly been and a 
prey to constant indispositions. He was, however, 
the most patient little invalid imaginable, and rea- 



196 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

sonable beyond belief, despite the fact that he was 
naturally quick and impetuous; but he controlled 
himself wonderfully, and did his utmost to please 
those who nursed him. 

When a mere child he attached to himself all 
with whom he came in contact by his untiring ef- 
forts to be agreeable. Miss Shaw, his English gov- 
erness, was the very best soul in the world ; she was 
thoroughly conscious of the dignity of her position, 
and lost no opportunity of advising and warning the 
Prince, endeavoring to develop all that was gener- 
ous and noble in his nature. Her devotion and care 
of him were unceasing, and she actually worshiped 
the lad. 

" My Prince" she would call him, with a mixt- 
ure of the two languages which she spoke with 
equal difficulty, for she had partially forgotten her 
English and never wholly overcame the difficulties 
of the French tongue. She slept in the Prince's 
chamber, in a sort of alcove formed by curtains of 
pale-blue satin which matched the rest of the hang- 
ings, and was ever alert and watchful. The Prince 
was fondly attached to her, and paid her a thousand 
original and tender little attentions. 

He possessed one trait unusual among children, 
which was that of treating all who served him with 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 197 

marked courtesy and respect. He was very fond of 
his young companions, among whom Louis Con- 
neau was his especial favorite. They saw each other 
daily, and though devoted friends, many storms and 
tempests arose between them. 

One day when there was to be a state dinner at 
the Tuileries at which the Prince was not to appear, 
he asked permission to invite Louis Conneau to dine 
with him, and, in order to create an agreeable sur- 
prise for his friend he requested that a strawberry 
cream might be prepared for them — this being 
a delicacy of which both lads were extravagantly 
fond But during the morning a terrible quarrel 
took place, and Louis Conneau, deeply wounded, 
asked permission to return home. The Prince was 
too proud to show how much this deseition affected 
him, and finished alone, as best he could, the day 
which was to have been one of such delight to both. 

When the dinner hour arrived the Prince took 
his seat at table and tried to eat as usual, but when 
the strawberry cream appeared his self-control was 
quite vanquished, and the tears which he had long 
striven to restrain began to roll down his cheeks. 

" Take the cream to Conneau," he said to one of 
the servants, " and tell him I haven't the heart to 
eat it without him." 



198 BEGOLLEOTIONS OF THE 

He was, however, very mischievous. One day 
some one brought him from a christening a box of 
sugar-plums, which, as he was not usually allowed 
to eat bonbons, appeared to him a very magnificent 
present, and he at once went in search of the Em- 
press to show them to her. But, as he was passing 
the sentinel stationed at his door, a ridiculous idea, 
such as could only occur to a child, crossed his brain, 
and without more ado he emptied the whole box of 
sweets into the man's boot. It must have been a 
severe test of the man's discipline, his duty requir- 
ing him to remain utterly motionless as he presented 
arms, while receiving this avalanche of douceurs. 

The Prince always demonstrated a wonderful 
temerity, and ever seemed absolutely ignorant of 
danger ; he was the first among his comrades to 
propose hazardous enterprises, and it required great 
vigilance on the part of his attendants to preserve 
him from danger. 

At eight years of age he rode horseback finely ; 
and when he reviewed the troops at his father's 
side, seated upon his little pony, Bouton d'Or, 
more than one old soldier who looked upon the 
graceful, noble little fellow felt the moisture come 
into his eyes. The Prince ranked as corporal in the 
first regiment of grenadiers of the guard ; he wore 



GOUBT OF THE TUILERIES. 199 

his bearskin cap most bravely, and one could per- 
suade him to cease from any mischief by simply 
saying : " I would not do that, monseigneur ; you 
will dishonor your uniform." 

From the time of his birth he had had in his serv- 
ice an old equerry who initiated him in the eques- 
trian science as conscientiously as if it had been the 
priesthood. He was a most worthy man, and his 
influence over his royal pupil was a very happy one. 
He was from Gascony, and although no longer 
young, his disposition was lively and agreeable to a 
child; he thoroughly understood the Prince, and 
instructed him marvelously in everything connected 
with his own profession. 

The Prince Imperial was so fortunate as to 
escape the evils to which royal children are often 
exposed in meeting with a servility and dangerous 
obsequiousness on the part of their subordinates. 
His early surroundings were so disposed as to shield 
him from everything that could pervert his natu- 
rally fine qualities and disposition. He was allowed 
to indulge his native gayety and love of freedom, 
and was not subjected to needless restraint ; but he 
was also taught to leave his sports at the bidding of 
decorum and to submit to those rigid laws of eti- 
quette which tyrannize over the youth of princes. 



200 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

At his birth Mme. l'Amirale Bruat was ap- 
pointed governess of the royal children of France. 
With her Madonna-like face, her proud and noble 
profile, she resembled the guardian angel of the na- 
tion watching over the cradle of its little ones. The 
Prince always retained a most tender affection for 
her and wrote to her frequently while he lived. 

Mme. Bizot and Mme. de Brancion were named 
under-governesses ; one or the other of them always 
accompanied the Prince when he went out, but their 
positions were entirely honorary ones, the Empress 
reserving to herself the real direction of her son's 
private life. When it became necessary to choose a 
nurse for the infant, Mme. la Comtesse Ducos, wife 
of the Minister of the Marine, one of the loveliest 
persons at court, and who at the time was nursing 
twin children of her own, offered to nurse the 
Prince Imperial ; but the Empress would not accept 
this offer of devotion, and selected a strong, fine 
peasant woman. 

A second nurse also lived at the palace with her 
child, ever ready to replace the first in case of 
emergency. It never became necessary to employ 
her, but her presence there had a salutary effect 
upon the other. For instance, if the latter showed 
any ill-temper or capriciousness they merely said to 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 201 

her, "If you are tired, nurse, let the other one 
come down," when the clouds would disappear like 
magic, and there was no further trouble with her. 
She had several children, who, in addition to the 
pension which his Majesty allowed her, were reared 
at his expense. It will scarcely be believed that 
one of her sons, some years older than the Prince, 
was arrested among the Communists in 1871, and 
transported to Noumea. He applied to the Em- 
press, asking her to interest herself in his fate, 
hoping that her influence might secure some privi- 
leges for him. The Empress, who had the Prince's 
foster-sister with her in England, was good enough 
to do what she could for the man, and requested 
some one in authority to look after him ; which 
kindness caused certain newspapers to remark that 
the Commune had been largely composed of per- 
sons attached to the Empire. 

The departure of his nurse was a long and bitter 
grief to the Prince. She wore the picturesque cos- 
tume of the Bourbonnaise women, which consisted 
of a red skirt, black velvet bodice, and small lace 
cap. The Prince preserved a bit of silk from one 
of her dresses and a morsel of the velvet of one of 
her bodices, and for several years he went to sleep 
every night with the silk beneath his head, and rub- 



202 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

bing his face with the velvet. Miss Shaw was ter- 
ribly afraid of losing these two precious objects. 

" My Prince would be inconsolable," she would 
say, " if they were taken from him." 

When he was eight years old, he was partially 
withdrawn from feminine government. The un- 
der-governesses became honorary, and were replaced 
by M. Monier, the Prince's tutor, who had been 
warmly recommended to the Empress by Mme. 
Cornu, who was the daughter of one of Queen Hor- 
tense's women of the chamber, and had been edu- 
cated at Arenenberg. 

Mme. Cornu was a most intelligent woman, who 
had shown at a very early age a marked desire for 
study. Queen Hortense became interested in her 
and gave her the advantages of a superior educa- 
tion. All her attractiveness lay in her mind, for 
she was irredeemably homely and hunchbacked. 
These misfortunes, however, had not prevented M. 
Cornu from marrying her. He was an artist of 
considerable talent, who was employed to decorate 
many of the official chapels. She gathered about 
her a circle of the most distinguished men, littera- 
teurs, artists, and academicians, who attributed to 
her the possession of a wide influence. She showed 
a warm devotion to the Emperor, who did much 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 203 

for lier ; but, in choosing Monier through, her rec- 
ommendation, his Majesty was not favored by any 
very great luck. 

Though the tutor was a thoroughly honest man, 
he was timid and retiring, and possessed neither the 
manners nor tact necessary to the station to which 
he was called ; however, he remained but a short 
time with the Prince. He was a pupil of Vltcole 
Normale, and was well versed in scientific research, 
but he was utterly unused to the habits and require- 
ments of good society, and in this respect the 
Prince, child as he was, far excelled him. He 
wrote the history of Alcuin, the preceptor of 
Charlemagne, this work having been suggested by 
his own position. He abandoned himself to the 
most profound research after material, hoping to 
publish several volumes upon so grand a subject ; 
but I fear that the book was never finished, as he 
died shortly after leaving the Prince's service, 
having never acquired the habits of the court, and 
having wearied his pupil beyond description by his 
pedantic and uninteresting precepts and methods. 
He was replaced by M. Filon, who belonged to the 
university, and was a very distinguished and ele- 
gant young man. He remained with the Prince 
until after the war, when the Emperor decided 



204 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

to place his son at the military school at Wool- 
wich. 

It was M. Filon who received at Hastings, in 
the early days of the arrival of the Empress and 
Prince Imperial in England, M. Regnier, that mys- 
terious agent whose mission — if indeed he really had 
one — has never been divined by the the public. It 
was M. Filon who, at his earnest prayer, sent M. 
Regnier a photograph signed by the Prince Im- 
perial. They were prodigal of this little favor to 
Frenchmen who visited England for the purpose of 
presenting their homage to their Majesties. This 
trifling circumstance assumed unexpected propor- 
tions. 

M. Regnier presented the photograph to Mare- 
chal Bazaine, at Metz, as a token of the power which 
he had received to negotiate with him, thus succeed- 
ing in securing the marshal's attention ; but this en- 
tire affair has always remained in the utmost ob- 
scurity. The Empress has never been able to throw 
any light upon it, as she did not receive M. Regnier 
herself and did not attach any importance to his 
visit at the time. 

It was not until later, when after-events had 
transpired, that the discovery was made of M. Regn- 
ier's unworthy conduct and of the abuse of confi- 



COURT OF THE TUILEEIES. 205 

dence lie had been guilty of in presenting the pho- 
tograph signed by the Prince Imperial as a pledge 
of his mission. This pretended mission of M. 
Regnier — who is now dead — is also enveloped in a 
strange mystery. In considering it one is lost in 
conjecture regarding the aim he had in view and 
the motives which guided him. 

Was he an abetting agent, a vulgar intriguer, or 
a man of good intentions who believed himself 
capable, by secret negotiations, of disentangling a 
terrible web \ One is puzzled by a thousand con- 
jectures. 

I shall relate in another part of these souvenirs 
what I have been able to learn on this subject ; but 
at best we are reduced to hypotheses, and, notwith- 
standing the most active researches, we can not dis- 
cover the motive which dictated M. Regnier's singu- 
lar conduct. 



u 



206 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 



Yin. 

On every Thursday during the winter there was 
a grand dinner given at the Tuileries to the ambas- 
sadors, generals, deputies, prefects, and statesmen of 
all ranks. This was supplemented in the evening 
by a reception, open to all the high functionaries 
and their wives. The Empress was endowed with 
the rare faculty of remembering every one whom 
she had ever met, and no matter how long a time 
had intervened since she had last seen a person she 
could call him by name and remember the chief 
facts connected with his family and position. She 
had a kind word for all, and never sat down during 
the entire evening, passing from group to group and 
striving to be agreeable to every one, taking much 
more trouble to make her guests feel at ease than is 
customary with the majority of hostesses. 

Between January and Lent there were four 
state balls given, to which three or four thousand 
invitations were issued. These fetes were of im- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 207 

portance to thousands in Paris. On these occasions 
the men were dressed in uniform or in full court 
costume, and it is difficult to give any adequate idea 
of the brilliancy of these entertainments which were 
so gorgeously embellished by the magnificence of 
their surroundings. 

The superb grand staircase which ascended 
from the archway of the Pavilion de VHorloge 
mounted straight up between highly decorated 
walls, while an immense balustrade of flowers 
adorned it on either side. 

The life guardsmen, ranged upon the steps mo- 
tionless as statues as they presented arms, gorgeous 
in their elegant uniforms of light blue turned out 
with red, glittering cuirasses, and helmets orna- 
mented with long curling white plumes, were re- 
cruited from among the handsomest men in the 
army and with their martial air, fine presence, and 
splendid figures, formed as magnificent an escort as 
a sovereign could well desire. 

The throng of guests assembled in the Galerie 
de la Paix, awaiting the opportunity to enter the 
Salle des Marechaux, the doors of this latter apart- 
ment being kept firmly closed until their Majesties 
made their appearance. 

After the Emperor and Empress left their apart- 



208 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

ments they repaired to the Salon du Premier Con- 
sul, where their presence was awaited by the im- 
perial family, the ^dies and officers of their respect- 
ive households, the diplomatic corps, ministers, and 
state dignitaries. 

It was there that presentations took place. 
Persons who desired to be received at court ad- 
dressed a petition to the high chamberlain, who com- 
municated it to the Emperor. If no objection 
were made to their request they were told to apply 
to the Due de Bassano if they were men, if women 
to either the Princesse d'Essling or to one of the 
ladies in waiting, who would present them when the 
proper time came. Foreigners underwent the same 
ceremony through the medium of their ambassa- 
dors. 

Afterward these persons might be admitted, by 
invitation, to Compiegne or to the small, private 
receptions at the court. 

The presentations usually took place on the 
nights of the state balls, after which their Majesties, 
preceded by their chamberlains and followed by an 
imposing procession of princes and princesses, mem- 
bers of the diplomatic corps, grand dignitaries, and 
all the persons attached to the court, made a grand 
entree into the Salle des Marechaux, their appear- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 209 

ance being heralded by the announcement, uttered 
in a loud and pompous tone, of " The Emperor." 

Several rows of seats for the accommodation of 
ladies surrounded this immense hall, while upon a 
raised estrade in the middle were arranged two 
fauteuils of similar appearance surrounded with 
other less imposing chairs. The Emperor and Em- 
press sat there, together with the members of the 
imperial family and all the persons holding positions 
at court. 

Places were reserved elsewhere for the state 
dignitaries, the members of the diplomatic corps, 
and the wives of all the gentlemen attached to their 
Majesties' households. During the latter years of 
the empire the state quadrille was dispensed with, 
and immediately after the Emperor and Empress 
were seated the dancing began. 

An invisible orchestra was stationed on a plat- 
form overhead, and the empty space in the middle 
of this vast hall was soon thronged with men desir- 
ous of obtaining a nearer view of their Majesties. 
The chamberlains found it extremely difficult to 
maintain the circle reserved for the dancers from 
being encroached upon by the eager gazers, and 
notwithstanding their most strenuous efforts its lim- 
its constantly grew more and more contracted. 



210 RECOLLECTION'S OF TEE 

The ladies of the court were always most gor- 
geously arrayed. Princesse Mathilde, whose superb 
figure and noble profile were well fitted to adorn a 
throne, was unfailing in her attendance at these fes- 
tivities, for, though she had but little taste for such 
things, she knew that by sacrificing her own incli- 
nations in this respect she gratified the Emperor ; 
Princesse Clotilde also appeared regularly, cheer- 
fully resigned to the necessity ; and Princesse Lu- 
cien Murat, who was of the rank and title of 
" Highness," generally assisted with her daughter, 
the beautiful young Princesse Anna, and her daugh- 
ter-in-law Princesse Joachim Murat, nee Wagram, 
the wife of the brilliant colonel of the " Blues." 

Besides these there were usually present the 
other members of the Emperor's family, the daugh- 
ters of Lucien Bonaparte, the second brother of 
Napoleon I. These ladies had no official rank at 
court, but out of courtesy were accorded the title of 
princess ; they were the Princesse Julie, Marquise 
Poccagiovine, the Princesse Charlotte, Comtesse 
Primoli, the Princesse Augusta, and the Princesse 
Gabrielli. They all left the pleasantest memories 
behind them. 

The Princesse Julie, who was a person of supe- 
rior mind and cultivation, presided over a salon 



COURT OF THE TUILEEIES. 211 

which was frequented by the most distinguished 
and intellectual persons of Parisian and foreign 
society. 

After the war they all retired to Rome, where 
they renewed many old friendships and lived to- 
gether most unitedly. There, also, their house be- 
came a center of attraction. Thoroughly French 
at heart they were ever faithful to the memory of 
their beloved land, and every Frenchman who 
passed through Rome received a warm welcome be- 
neath their hospitable roof. 

Princesse Julie was robbed of her dearest pos- 
sessions by death, which stole in rapid succession 
three of her little ones. Princesse Charlotte was 
the mother of Comte Joseph Primoli, a society poet 
warmly appreciated both in Paris and Pome. 

Except to a few men who could take advantage 
of the privileges accorded them by their positions 
to be agreeable to the ladies, the state balls at the 
Tuileries were not the favorite entertainments at 
court, although they certainly were one of the most 
beautiful and striking spectacles that gratified the 
eyes of Parisian society. 

At eleven o'clock a passage was cleared through 
the crowd by the chamberlains, who preceded their 
Majesties to the Galerie de la Paix, where dancing 



212 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

was also permitted. After resting here a moment, 
the Emperor and Empress made the tour of the gal- 
lery, saluting their guests, afterward returning to 
the Salle des Marechaux, whence they proceeded to 
the other salons. In the Galerie de Diane a mag- 
nificent buffet was spread, laden with everything 
suitable for an evening supper. 

About midnight their Majesties retired, and the 
fete continued until three or four in the morning 
under the auspices of the officers of the household, 
who did the honors most gallantly. 

To a person privileged to sit in one of the gal- 
leries surrounding the Salle des Marechaux and 
look down upon the gay scene these entertainments 
afforded a truly magnificent sight. It happened 
upon two or three occasions that the Empress was 
too indisposed to receive, and as I was never per- 
mitted to attend any reception without her I found 
myself excused from appearing. I therefore would 
make my way to these galleries by means of the lit- 
tle interior staircases and, myself unobserved, feast 
my eyes upon what really resembled a scene from 
fairyland. 

The gilded dome of the vaulted roof was up- 
held by a group of caryatides and adorned by 
trophies of arms. Portraits of the twelve marshals 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 213 

of the empire in their rich uniforms decorated the 
panels; draperies of scarlet velvet bordered with 
glittering golden fringe draped the huge windows, 
which, large as they were, seemed mere loopholes in 
the vast proportions of that great hall. 

The variety and elegance of the men's dress con- 
trasting with the severe simplicity of their ordinary 
black coats was a special feature of these occasions. 
Many of the officers wore white knee-breeches with 
their uniforms, and the diplomatic corps, en grande 
tenue, represented a union of the costumes of all 
the different countries ; one could behold those of 
almost all nationalities worn by Kussians, English- 
men, Greeks, Hungarians, and Persians, some of 
which fairly scintillated with embroideries and 
orders, while others presented a marked contrast 
of severity and plainness. Uniforms were to be 
seen there of every army in the world, even in- 
cluding that of China, whose code of honor is so 
strict that it is not safe even so much as to graze 
one of its member's sabres with the tip of your 
finger — a deadly insult, it appears — unless you de- 
sire to be ripped up. 

Each of the departments of the Emperor's house- 
hold had its special state livery ; the old coat d la 
Frangaise, differing only in color, was worn by all, 



214 RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 

as were also the white knee-breeches and white silk 
stockings. The chamberlains of the Emperor wore 
a scarlet dress coat with wide gold embroideries ; the 
equerries green and gold ; the hunt green and sil- 
ver ; the prefects of the palace amaranth and gold ; 
the masters of ceremony violet and gold ; and the 
officers of ordnance pale blue embroidered with 
silver. 

The Empress's chamberlains and equerries wore 
blue and silver. Besides these there were the pe- 
culiar uniforms of the guard, of the officers of artil- 
lery — black with gold frogs — and the uniform of 
the " Blues " who were then commanded by Prince 
Joachim Murat, one of the most distinguished men 
in the army. 

Certain faces stood out from among the crowd 
at these fetes with a distinctness which impressed 
them indelibly upon the memory. It seemed as if 
they had been specially created for all this splendor. 
Among others I remember the Marquis de Flamma- 
rens, a perfect type of the chamberlain of Vancien 
regime, with his refined face, his old-time manners, 
his snowy and carefully curled hair — Chinchilla, as 
we called him familiarly among ourselves. A per- 
petual smile of adoration curved his delicate lips 
whenever he conversed with women, and he made 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 215 

himself fairly ubiquitous in his efforts to secure 
favorable places for his hosts of fair friends, offer- 
ing his arm with charming courtesy to the prettiest 
strangers, in order to force a way for them through 
the dense throngs. It really appeared that while 
he officiated at these sumptuous and regal affairs he 
was experiencing the satisfaction of all his senses. 

How many among those who composed that ele- 
gant court have really owed their most enviable 
conquests to the prestige bestowed by those laced 
coats, before which the crowd opened as if at the 
touch of an enchanter's wand, and which made, for 
the time being, privileged beings of those who were 
fortunate enough to secure their wearers' attention. 

The Empress always withdrew from these fetes 
completely tired out. Often she would not take the 
time to summon her women, but, before entering 
her dressing-room, would strip off the diadem and 
jewels, whose weight oppressed her, and tumble them 
pell-mell into the skirt which I held up to receive 
them. I was always terribly frightened in trans- 
ferring these precious gems to their repository, for 
there were some among them that represented a 
fortune in themselves. 

The Empress had had part of the crown dia- 
monds reset to suit her own taste. To many of 



216 RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 

them a history was attached. I remember in par- 
ticular a yellow diamond as large as a small walnut, 
which was set in a comb surrounded by white 
stoues. It had been swallowed by an insurgent in 
1848 during the pillage of the Tuileries. The sharp 
facets of the gem had produced internal disorders, 
and the unhappy man died in the greatest agony, 
after confessing his theft. The diamond was recov- 
ered at the autopsy. It was one of the largest 
stones in the crown collection. 

The Empress did not learn this story until some 
time later, and the tragedy connected with it was so 
unpleasant that she ceased wearing it. 

At carnival time a masquerade ball was usually 
given ; the invitations to this were less general than 
to the state balls and included only those who had 
already been presented at court. These fetes, which 
were characterized by the greatest gayety and free- 
dom, and at which the imagination was given fullest 
license, were a rare exhibition of elegance and 
originality. Many women took this occasion to 
pursue all sorts of intrigues beneath the safe shelter 
of their masks ; while young men of slender stature 
and musical voices profited by these advantages to 
carry on the most ridiculous deceptions. 

One evening Comte Kaynald de Choiseui turned 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 217 

all heads, and every one was on the qui vive to dis- 
cover who the witty, audacious woman was who so 
well concealed her identity beneath an elegant 
domino worn with the perfection of feminine grace, 
and who never betrayed by the slightest awkward- 
ness that she belonged to the sterner sex. Even in 
the masked photograph which she freely distributed 
it was impossible to detect the deceit. 

One year, four sphinxes, dressed d V llgyptienne, 
with fillets binding their hair and shrouded in long 
veils of high-colored striped stuff, piqued every- 
body's curiosity by their liveliness and audacity. 
They were the Comtesse Fleury, the Marechale 
Canrobert, the Duchesse d'Isly, and the Earonne de 
Bourgoing. All four were tall women of the same 
height, dressed identically alike, and they played 
their parts with so much skill and substituted them- 
selves for each other so cleverly that the persons 
with whom they conversed were utterly perplexed 
as to whether they had been talking all the time to 
one or twenty different women. 

On one occasion the obelisk of Luxor, from 
the Place de la Concorde, gravely traversed the sa- 
lons, concealing beneath its hieroglyphic - covered 
pyramid an officer of the life guard of mighty stat- 
ure. One evening a gigantic harlequin, dressed in 



218 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

motley, balanced himself just above the beads of 
the assemblage. The Emperor, alarmed by the 
dangerous antics in which the clown indulged, in- 
quired whom he might be, and learned that the 
buffoon was no less a person tl^jji the Marquis de 
Gallifet, who had believed himself sufficiently dis- 
guised in his strange habiliments to defy recog- 
nition. 

We were all somewhat accustomed to his boyish 
pranks, the right to indulge in which he bought at 
the price of a heroism which is not indeed rare in 
the French army, but which should cause us to 
view his caprices leniently. He had lately returned 
from Mexico, where he had so brilliantly conducted 
himself during the war. It is said that having been 
terribly wounded in a battle there, he was aban- 
doned as dead, but coming to himself shortly after- 
ward he succeeded in dragging himself, with his 
bowels completely ripped out, to an ambulance, 
where he arrived carrying his entrails in his kepi. 
In that torrid climate a wound of such a nature is a 
most critical matter, and ice is an absolute necessity 
in healing it. But ice was a rare luxury there, and 
to procure it was a matter of extreme difficulty, re- 
quiring a considerable and dangerous journey across 
steep mountains and through rough and rocky de- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 219 

files. Yet M. Gallifet was finally saved, thanks to 
the devotion of his comrades, who took turns each 
day in going to fetch the required supply. 

The serious nature of the wound was known in 
Paris. M. Gallifet had passed considerable time in 
his Majesty's service as officer of ordnance, and the 
Emperor was greatly interested in him. A little 
before his return his wife came to a reception at the 
Tuileries, and was at once surrounded by a throng 
of people, all eager to congratulate her on her hus- 
band's fortunate escape. The Emperor himself 
spoke to her, warmly expressing his sympathy for 
her anxiety. 

" You must have suffered horribly," he said, "in 
hearing of the dangerous character of the wound, 
which was so freely discussed in the papers." 

u Oh, no, sire," Mme. de Gallifet returned, with 
her angelic smile, " he is so lucky, you know." 

And she related to the Emperor how, upon the 
very day that the physicians had for the first time 
been able to give any hope of her husband's life, all 
communication had been shut off, rendering it ab- 
solutely impracticable to procure the ice, without 
which they had, up to that time, pronounced it 
impossible to cure him. 

Theirs was a most indifferent union, and the 



220 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

ravishing beauty of Mme. de G-allifet could not pre- 
serve her from the sorrows of an uncongenial mar- 
riage. 

She was sweet tempered and most kind-hearted, 
and never said an ill-natured word of any one. She 
remained in Paris throughout the entire siege, car- 
ing for the wounded with a devotion which was 
little short of sublime. 

The celebrated Comtesse de Castiglione made 
her last appearance in the social world, I think, at a 
masked ball at the Tuileries. I had an opportunity 
of seeing her in 1865, at a dinner at Saint-Cloud 
given in honor of King Humbert, then Prince 
Eoyal of Italy. 

Mme. de Castiglione's beauty was well-nigh 
faultless, of a character which did not seem to be- 
long to our time ; yet, although it may seem almost 
incredible, her perfect features and undeniably 
graceful person were utterly devoid of charm. Her 
handsome face was characterized by an expression 
of haughtiness and hardness that reminded one of 
the old divinities whom devotees sought to propi- 
tiate by offerings and sacrifices. 

If a perfectly modeled statue could be endowed 
with life some idea might be produced of this sin- 
gular person. Indeed, in watching her move and 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 221 

converse, one would almost have declared that she 
was an animated bit of sculpture. She seemed to 
possess far less of the essence of life than other 
women, and jet she was wonderfully clever. Doubt- 
less the reason of her immobility lay in the fact that 
she did not choose to condescend to humanize her- 
self for the many. 

It has been pretended that she played the role 
of political spy in the deft hands of M. de Cavour ; 
this is difficult to credit. She had sufficient beauty 
to captivate without meddling with diplomacy. 

It was at a ball given by the Duchesse de Bas- 
sano that she made her first appearance in Parisian 
society. She set the fashion of wearing those great 
feathers arranged like a crown, which gave her still 
more height and were vastly becoming to her lofty 
style. 

In 1860, Prince Jerome gave a fete at the Palais- 
Boy ale in honor of the Empress. Her Majesty, 
wearing a gown of white tulle with a garland 
of Parma violets in her hair, looked exquisitely 
beautiful, her beauty being yet more greatly en- 
hanced by that indefinable charm which rendered 
her so irresistibly fascinating. Prince Jerome es- 
corted her through the various salons, offering her, 

not his arm, but his hand, in accordance with the 
15 



222 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

fashion of his youth, preceding her a trine, with a 
grace which, if it were perhaps somewhat anti- 
quated, was nevertheless charmingly gallant and 
chivalrous. 

At one o'clock, as the Emperor and Empress 
were about retiring, the Comtesse de Castiglione, 
hurriedly ascending the staircase, came full upon 
them. 

" You are very late in arriving, Madame la 
Comtesse," said his Majesty, courteously. 

" Rather, sire, it is you who are early in leav- 
ing," she returned, and passed on, entering the sa- 
lons with that air of overwhelming disdain in which 
she included all humanity. 

She possessed a strong and cultivated intellect, 
being able to write and converse marvelously, it was 
said, upon the most serious subjects. She had the 
intriguing instinct of the Florentines, and the very 
few men who knew her well — for she admitted no 
women to her confidence — attributed to her superior 
mental endowments. 

All the stories concerning her represented her as 
imperious and peculiar, absolutely worshiping her 
own marvelous beauty. She had but one child, a 
son, who died at the age of twenty — she had not the 
reputation of being a very devoted mother. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 223 

After her marriage she resolutely persisted in 
her refusal to pay a ceremonious visit to her moth- 
er-in-law, the Marquise de Castiglione. Her hus- 
band exhausted all his powers of persuasion in vain 
endeavor to induce her to perform this simple act of 
courtesy. At last one day when they chanced to 
be driving together, as she seemed to be in better 
humor than usual, the count gave his mother's ad- 
dress to the coachman, hoping that his wife would 
allow herself to be prevailed upon. The lovely 
countess said not a word, but waited until the car- 
riage was crossing a bridge when, quickly taking 
her shoes off, she threw them one after the other 
into the water. 

" I think," she then said, turning to her hus- 
band, " that you will not force me to walk in my 
bare feet." 

At the time when all Paris was gossiping about 
her beauty and extravagance, the Duchesse Tascher 
de la Pagerie, whose husband was high chamberlain 
to the Empress and who was at the head of all fetes 
and charities, called upon the Comtesse de Castigli- 
one to ask her to take part in a tableau vivant 
which was to include many other society people, on 
the occasion of a concert given for the benefit of the 
poor. After a great deal of hesitation, the countess 



224: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

allowed herself to be persuaded, on the condition 
that she might choose her own rdle and costume. 

Only too delighted to be able to add the coun- 
tess's name to her programme, the duchess yielded 
willingly to her conditions. Everything concern- 
ing her appearance was left to the countess un- 
questioningly, and when the night came the curtain 
rose upon her seated at the entrance of a grotto, en- 
veloped in the brown robe of a hermit, which cov- 
ered her like a sack, even her face being entirely 
concealed from view by the hood which was drawn 
over it. Every one expected some surprise, but she 
remained utterly motionless, and never made even a 
gesture until after the curtain fell. Many membeis 
of the audience who had anticipated a far different 
and more agreeable tableau, found this jest in very 
poor taste and did not hesitate to let her see it. 

Yet on another occasion she was prodigal 
enough of her charms, and at a masked ball given 
by the Minister of Marine displayed them almost 
wholly unveiled as, in the attire of Salamho, she 
showed to the public much more of her beauty 
than women usually exhibit in salons. 

Dr. Arnal, physician to his Majesty, of whom I 
was very fond and who often accompanied the court 
to Compiegne and Fontainebleau, once described to 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 225 

me a visit that he had occasion to pay her. She 
was taken very ill at Havre, and sent to beg Dr. 
Arnal to go to her. The good doctor had a very 
large practice in Paris, and found it exceedingly in- 
convenient to get away for any length of time ; he 
therefore arranged to get to Havre early in the 
morning, and at nine o'clock presented himself at 
the hotel where the countess was staying. Here 
they told him that the countess was not yet visible, 
and begged him to call again. An hour later he 
returned, only to receive the same reply ; and so it 
went on from hour to hour, the doctor insisting 
that he must see his patient as he was obliged to re- 
turn to Paris immediately, and the countess sending 
him word that she would soon be ready. 

At last, at one o'clock in the afternoon, upon his 
declaring that he would not return again, he was 
admitted. Adorned like an idol, the Comtesse de 
Castiglione, who was really very ill, was lying in 
bed covered with rich laces and costly furs, her hair 
dressed high, as for a ball, and glittering with dia- 
monds. She was fairly dazzling in her feverish 
beauty, and was decorated with all the contents of 
her jewel-casket. 

Dr. Arnal was an old man, and nothing about 
him seemed calculated to awaken the spirit of con- 



226 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

quest in this disdainful beauty. The old man wore 
his hair in a most singular fashion, brought forward 
and tied in a little bow-knot almost upon his fore- 
head. He held an excellent position at court, being 
highly respected as a man as well as physician. He 
enjoyed the confidence of both the Emperor and 
Empress who made everything of him. His death 
was a sad blow, for he was liberally endowed with 
intellectual and spiritual gifts. 

At one of the last masquerade balls given at the 
Tuileries the Empress represented Marie- Antoinette 
as she appeared in Mme. Lebrun's beautiful por- 
trait, wearing a costume of red velvet bordered with 
furs, with the great plumed toque on her head. 

Mme. de Castiglione, who had been for some 
time a stranger at court, had succeeded in procuring 
an invitation, no one knew how. She appeared 
dressed in black, looking marvelously beautiful in 
the widow's costume of Marie de' Medicis. Yery 
few persons saw her, for she did not penetrate, so 
to speak, into the salons. It was generally under- 
stood that she was not among the invited guests, and 
a chamberlain was soon dispatched to escort her 
back to her carriage. She was thus one of the per- 
sons who underwent the humiliation of being " re- 
conduitesP ... 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 227 

This mortification, which was rarely inflicted, 
was nevertheless suffered by some few persons. 
Among these was a woman who had been the retailer 
of an outrageous piece of scandal concerning a very 
beautiful young girl prominent in the official circles 
of the Tuileries, her father occupying an elevated 
position at court. At one of the balls this woman 
took advantage of an occasion when she was sur- 
rounded by a goodly audience, to relate the circum- 
stances connected with the mysterious birth of a 
child, adding the most precise details concerning it, 
and even naming the young girl as its mother. 

The Marquise de Latour-Maubourg, one of her 
Majesty's ladies in waiting, who heard the recital, 
remarked that it was an odious invention calculated 
to do infinite injury to a young girl's reputation, 
and that no one should repeat such a calumny un- 
less she had sufficient proof. 

The woman repeated her affirmations. 

" I am absolutely sure," she said, " for it was not 
a week ago that the whole thing occurred at the 
house of one of my friends." 

" I am so much the more surprised," returned 
Mme. de Maubourg, " because there the young lady 
is now, dancing." 

And, indeed, there the young lady was, fresh 



228 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

and lovely as usual, gayly enjoying herself in the 
next room. 

The scandal-monger's confusion was overwhelm- 
ing, and Mme. de Maubourg, having gone to her 
Majesty and told her the outrageous story that had 
been set in circulation concerning a person whom 
the Empress honored with an affectionate regard 
and whom she received in her own home, a cham- 
berlain was sent to inform the woman that her car- 
riage awaited her. From that day her name was 
erased from the invitation list, which fact did not 
restrain her, however, from appearing at the Tuil- 
eries, where she was always to be seen at the gen- 
eral receptions. 

There was no dancing at court during Lent, but, 
instead, four concerts were given. These musical 
fetes, at which the most celebrated artists assisted, 
were under the direction of Comte Bacciocchi, super- 
intendent of theaters, and amiable M. Auber, the 
great composer. The Empress was no musician, 
the artistic sentiment in her finding its development 
in painting and literature. 

M. Auber, who was also chapel-master at the 
Tuileries, was of advanced age and died in Paris in 
1870, after the eventful 4th of September. One 
evening as the Empress was familiarly chatting with 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 229 

him she asked if he had never regretted remaining 
unmarried. 

" Never, madame," replied the witty old man, 
"and less than ever now, when I think that Ma- 
dame Anber would be nearly eighty years old." 

On Good Friday the " Stabat " was chanted in the 
Tuileries chapel. The ladies attended by invitation 
dressed in low, black mourning costumes with black 
lace veils. 

After Easter social gayety was again resumed, 
but in a much less formal and infinitely more amus- 
ing fashion ; there was far less regard paid to rules 
of etiquette, precedence, and court restrictions, the 
Empress being especially considerate then of the 
claims of youth, which were apt to be somewhat 
ignored in the great official routs. One can not im- 
agine prettier parties than those which were called 
" the Empress's little Mondays." They were given 
in her Majesty's private apartments, dancing being 
carried on in the Salons du Premier Consul and 
oVAjpollon. 

There were not more than five or six hundred 
invitations issued, and the elegance and festivity of 
these reunions caused them to be ranked among the 
most select in Paris. 

One of these small balls took place soon after 



230 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

my arrival at court. Being in mourning for my 
father I wore white, and naturally did not dance. 
Immediately after her Majesty's entrance the dancing 
began. I remember that on that evening I, for the 
first time, saw the Comtesse de Pourtales and the 
Marquise de Galiifet. They were opposite each 
other in the same quadrille, and it is impossible to 
conceive a lovelier sight than these two women of 
contrasting styles presented, both being equally en- 
dowed with fascination, beauty, and grace. 

There was at this time in Paris a collection of fair 
and charming women that fully justified the brilliant 
reputation which was accorded the Court of the Tu- 
ileries. Years have passed since then, but most of 
those who still survive preserve with the traditions 
of their youth, an easy grace of manner, a distinc- 
tion of bearing, and a charm of conversation which 
may well be the envy of a later generation. 

Many marriages resulted from these gatherings. 
More than one young girl found in them a lucky 
fate ; and the kindly interest of the Emperor and 
Empress was often successful in discovering a happy 
solution of a difficult love problem. Some of these 
alliances, however, did not turn out as well as could 
have been wished. 

The Princess de Bauifremont, whose separation 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 231 

created so much, talk, was one of these young girls 
in whom her Majesty was particularly interested. 

Mile. Valentine de Chiniay pretended that her 
position at home was a most trying one and capti- 
vated the Empress by her brilliant imagination and 
the excessive sensitiveness which she expressed in 
the most fascinating way, rather than by her per- 
sonal charms which were exceedingly limited, for 
she had little beauty as her features were all too 
prominently developed. One shoulder was higher 
than the other and her carriage halting and awk- 
ward. Notwithstanding, she was a veritable siren. 
No woman ever lived who better understood the 
art of managing her family, her friends, public 
opinion, the world in general, and even the gravest 
magistrates when she became involved in legal diffi- 
culties — all those in fact whom she desired to please 
and of whose co-operation she happened to stand in 
need. 

She was wonderfully shrewd and clever, with 
an extraordinary energy of character and a strong 
and subtle mind, and was eminently skillful in 
manipulating all her weapons and turning every- 
thing to her own advantage, even making use of her 
delicate health as an excuse for furthering her own 
ends. Sbe invented divorce, and not being able to 



232 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

avail herself of its privileges independent of the 
law, she set herself at work with a really marvelous 
adroitness to overcome all the difficulties of a deli- 
cate situation in such a manner as to still preserve 
to herself fortune, children, and the charming man 
whose chivalrous love was her inspiration in her 
various struggles and battles. Prince George Bi- 
besco, of whom she is to-day the wife, even so ac- 
knowledged in France thanks to the law of M. 
Naquet, was assuredly one of the most delightful 
men imaginable. 

As to Prince de Bauffremont, he was simply a 
rough soldier, and well known as such. After the 
princess had given birth to two daughters, Prince 
de Bauffremont left for Mexico, and from that mo- 
ment the princess began to talk to her friends of 
all that she suffered in her home-life, continuing 
meanwhile to send her husband the most tender and 
affectionate letters, which were read at the trial. 
They were exceedingly numerous, and enlivened the 
proceedings immensely. 

Upon his return the prince discovered that his 
wife's attitude toward him was widely different 
from what her letters had led him to believe, and 
then the trouble began. The princess was a superb 
musician and an elegant letter-writer, her corre- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 233 

spondence sustaining a favorable comparison with 
that of the most cultivated and celebrated women of 
the last century. She was passionately tenacious of 
all the privileges attaching to her rank, and received 
her visitors seated in an imposing sort of throne- 
like chair, occupied, after the fashion of the chate- 
laines of the middle ages, in spinning. It was a 
somewhat surprising proceeding in our matter-of- 
fact nineteenth century. She succeeded in interest- 
ing many persons in her domestic tribulations and 
had not the slightest hesitation in washing her 
soiled linen in full view of the public. 

She created for herself an intimacy with certain 
men of position, whose influence and reputation 
were so well-established as to permit her to sway at 
will the opinions of such circles as she desired to 
gain credit with, and completely infatuated them. 
Four of these in particular, who were closely bound 
to each other and entirely devoted to sustaining and 
protecting her interests, allowed themselves to be 
slain in her defense. 

It was a perfect miracle that Prince de Bauffre- 
mont preserved his life ; it was one continuous duel 
between all these champions. The princess ill- 
requited her friends' devotion, even seeking to 
marry one of them to a person of the lowest condi- 



234: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

tion, who had served her as a useful tool in extricat- 
ing herself from the various complications conse- 
quent upon her efforts to regain her liberty. At 
last she left France with her children, fleeing almost 
like a fugitive from her native land. By renounc- 
ing her nationality and religion, she acquired the 
right to marry Prince Georges Bibesco in Walla- 
chia, of which country her new father-in-law was 
hosjoodar. 

The marriage of the hereditary Prince of Mona- 
co with the daughter of the Duchess of Hamilton, 
the Emperor's cousin through her mother, the 
Grande-Duchesse Stephanie of Baden, was -also the 
subject of unpleasant notoriety. Lady Mary Doug- 
las was a pretty, amiable young girl, and her mar- 
riage was celebrated at Marchais, the residence of 
the Prince of Monaco, in the year 18(39, I believe. 

I remember how very gay she was at the time, 
including all her friends in the wedding festivities 
and showing them with great glee all the beauties 
of her corbeille. In observing her animation and 
apparent joyousness, one would never have suspected 
her of being a victim led to the altar of sacrifice. 

Yet that such was the case, her mother, the 
Duchess of Hamilton, swore on the gospels in the 
Roman law court, some years later, in her endeavor 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 235 

to procure an annulment of her daughter's marriage. 
Lady Mary's only child was then about three or four 
years old, and the Prince of Monaco, who also pos- 
sessed the title of Due de Yalentinois — which, how- 
ever, he never used — retained the charge of his son, 
whom he brought up himself. After securing a 
divorce, Lady Mary Douglas married an officer of 
the Austrian army, of high position and great 
wealth, the Comte Festetich. 

The Duchess of Hamilton was one of those pas- 
sionately devoted mothers of whom too many exist 
for the well-being of young households. She 
seemed to be always in a dying condition, being a 
great sufferer from a disease of the heart which had 
developed itself after the tragic death of her hus- 
band, whom she idolized. 

Unknown to her, the Duke of Hamilton was 
terribly addicted to drink, and nearly every evening, 
under the pretext of going to the club, he went 
out and shut himself up in a wine-shop, where he 
indulged in solitary potations. It happened one 
evening that, being more intoxicated than usual, he 
staggered so badly on the staircase of the Maison 
d'Or that he missed his footing and fell the whole 
length. They lifted him up and carried him to the 
Hotel Bristol. Cerebral congestion supervened of 



236 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

which he died a few days later, without having re- 
covered consciousness. 

The Empress herself assumed the task of break- 
ing the sad news to the duchess. 

About the time of the fall of the empire, the 
sons of the Duke of Hamilton, having become 
young men of great wealth and entire independence, 
indulged themselves freely in a life of pleasure. 
They were entirely ignorant of the peculiar circum- 
stances connected with their father's death, and it 
reached the Empress's ears that they frequently or- 
ganized gay suppers at the Maison d'Or. All 
Paris was familiar with the facts of the duke's death, 
and many people were shocked at the close connec- 
tion between the conditions surrounding the tragic 
fate of the father and the noisy wine-parties of the 
sons. 

The Empress took it upon herself to acquaint 
them with what had passed, and they at once left 
France. One of them has since died, and the elder, 
the present duke, still lives in England. The 
Duchess of Hamilton died at the age of seventy- 
two. 



COURT OF THE TEILERIES. 237 



IX. 



The Mexican War was one of the fatal mistakes 
of the empire. Its obscure and well-nigh indecipher- 
able causes date back almost to 1858. We became 
involved in that unhappy enterprise by degrees, as 
we have since become involved in other remote ex- 
peditions. 

It is exceedingly difficult to gather up all the 
broken threads of this catastrophe which ruined and 
compromised so many persons, cost so many lives 
and such vast expenditure, terminated so fatally in 
the tragedy of Queretaro, and was perhaps the possi- 
ble origin of the events which brought about the 
fall of the empire. 

Some Mexican families, despoiled of their rights 

and driven from their native land by incessant civil 

wars, came to Paris. Their interests had been 

shamefully and unjustly betrayed, and Mexican 

residents of all nationalities, French, Spanish, and 

English, had suffered alike. They united their 
16 



238 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

claims and obtained from their respective govern- 
ments the promise of a joint appeal for redress 
from the Mexican Government. 

For this purpose a conference met in London, 
and obtained from the Mexican Congress an agree- 
ment to pay the indemnities. Considerable time 
passed by, the outrages still continued, and the 
Mexican Government, at the end of its resources 
which were insufficient to satisfy the claims that 
were pressed upon it, declared that it neither could 
nor would pay the required sums. 

This action aroused much excitement, the vari- 
ous powers detecting an underlying insult beneath 
the contempt with which the Mexican Government 
treated its obligations, and with a common accord 
France, England, and Spain agreed to unite in an 
energetic movement to exact the fulfillment of the 
Mexican promise. 

Admiral Jurien de la Graviere was chosen com- 
mander of the French expedition, and departed for 
Yera Cruz armed with the most unlimited powers 
to act, both as military commander and minister 
plenipotentiary. The aim of the expedition was a 
financial reimbursement. The admiral expressly 
requested permission to remain outside any litigious 
difficulties, and therefore the expedition was supple- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 239 

merited by M. Dubois de Saligny, former minister 
to Mexico, who was especially charged with the 
conduct of the technical and financial part of the 
enterprise. 

The admiral had a long conference with the Em- 
peror himself before his departure, and thoroughly 
informed himself of his Majesty's idea, which was 
this : to force the Mexican government to respect 
the terms of indemnity imposed by the various 
powers, and to take advantage of the prestige at- 
taching to the French name, in consequence of the 
glowing accounts rendered by Mexican visitors to 
Paris, to establish with that country relations fa- 
vorable to the promotion of our interests, to open 
considerable channels in a new and wealthy country, 
and thus to bring about an opportunity for French 
influence to extend itself in this very important re- 
gion of the New World at a particularly opportune 
moment, as just then all American traffic had come 
to a stand-still, owing to the war of the rebellion 
then being prosecuted between the North and 
South. 

On arriving at Havana, Admiral Jurien learned 
that the Spanish fleet had preceded him, and was 
already stationed at Yera Cruz. 

As to the English, preoccupied with the compli- 



240 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

cations which threatened to involve them in the 
American struggle, the Mexican affair was to them 
a matter of merely secondary importance, and it 
was in the most indifferent and half-hearted manner 
that they decided to continue the joint enterprise 
against Mexico, ready to withdraw entirely if their 
interests elsewhere seemed more pressing. It had 
been thoroughly understood that there was to be no 
aggressive action taken, and that we should content 
ourselves in the beginning of the negotiations with 
maintaining a firm hold upon the duties as security, 
in case we did not obtain the required pecuniary 
satisfaction. 

Yet the arrival of the Spanish squadron had al- 
ready thrown the country into a state of consterna- 
tion, as this naval display was look upon as a hostile 
menace. The Spanish had formerly occupied Mex- 
ico for many long years, and had left behind them 
anything but agreeable memories. The Mexicans 
regarded them as an hereditary enemy, and, fleeing 
before them, had evacuated not only the town and 
fortresses, but the whole coast-line, which was left 
undefended for an extent reaching almost to the 
city of Mexico, carrying with them all means of 
supply and transportation. 

Our troops disembarked in an actual desert. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 241 

"We had been led to anticipate an altogether differ- 
ent reception, and the question of feeding our men 
became a sorely perplexing problem. However, the 
members of the Mexican Congress soon showed 
themselves disposed to encourage the sojourn of the 
French among them, as our presence reassured the 
government and population as to the pacific nature 
of the negotiations. The appearance of our flotilla 
quite allayed their apprehensions, and they showed 
themselves very willing to receive us. In conse- 
quence of which, and in order to insure the security 
of the visiting corps, Admiral Jurien concluded the 
agreement called the Soledad, which delivered over 
to the French a belt of country sufficiently distant 
from the coast-line to admit of the use of vehicles, 
and well supplied with all the necessities of life. 

Yet, notwithstanding the good- will that the ad- 
miral manifested in all his dealings with it, the 
Mexican Government stipulated that, in event of 
hostilities declaring themselves, the French expedi- 
tion should agree to abandon the country granted 
them for occupation and retire to the coast-line. 
Admiral Jurien gave his word that the terms should 
be respected, and the preliminaries of the negotia- 
tions were at last entered upon ; not without much 
difficulty and delay, however, for it was not only 



242 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

necessary to treat with Congress, but also to recon- 
cile the pretensions of the three plenipotentaries. 

General Prim, who directed the Spanish expedi- 
tion, was particularly unmanageable, seeming to be 
entirely absorbed in an attempt to further his cause 
by means of personal influence. He was connected, 
through his wife, with a Mexican family of consid- 
erable prominence in the country, and this fact, to- 
gether with the pompous reputation which had pre- 
ceded him, caused him to be accredited with am- 
bitious designs ; moreover, it was said that Marechal 
Serrano, who at that time directed the Spanish po- 
litical affairs, was not sorry to see so disturbing an 
element removed to a safe distance. 

The commander of the English fleet appeared 
to be much more interested in the far-off rumble of 
the United States artillery than in the furtherance 
of the matter in hand. Thus the admiral found 
himself in a very delicate situation, forced to carry 
on the negotiations almost single-handed arid to 
guard against any breach of their pacific character. 

The Congress appeared disposed to admit the 
claims of the different powers, but moved with a 
slowness which showed an evident desire to gain 
time, thereby greatly harassing and annoying the 
foreign representatives. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 243 

On his side, M. de Saligny, disgusted at finding 
himself reduced to a mere nullity — shoved aside, as 
it were, by the superior authority of Admiral Jurien 
de la Graviere — and having renewed many former 
relations among the Mexicans, wrote letter after let- 
ter to Paris saying that there was much dissatis- 
faction concerning the prudence with which the 
admiral was acting, that better things had been 
hoped of our intervention, etc. 

He succeeded so well in impressing the French 
government with his views that the admiral re- 
ceived a courier from France, announcing the arrival 
of a military re-enforcement calculated to carry 
weight in hastening the negotiations. General 
Lorencez was sent to co-operate with him. At the 
same time, in order to insure his authority being re- 
spected, the general was promoted to the rank of 
vice-admiral, which made him the second in com- 
mand. 

At the very moment when these troops, which 
were but few in number, arrived at Yera Cruz, 
Spain and England, weary of waiting, severed their 
connection with the matter and retired, alleging as 
excuse for so doing the conduct of the Mexican 
Government, which persisted in seeking to discover 
for itself loop-holes of evasion, neither of the re- 



2M RECOLLECTION'S OF TEE 

spective powers being willing to assume a belliger- 
ent attitude. 

General Lorencez, quite recently arrived, and 
still uninstructed in matters of local difficulty, com- 
mitted the indiscretion of according the protection 
of the French flag to certain Mexican refugees, 
among whom was no less a person than Padre Mi- 
randa, who played such an atrocious role through- 
out the whole war. The government, greatly ex- 
cited by this injudicious step, demanded that the 
refugees should be delivered np ; but it was out of 
the question for us to abandon the unfortunates who 
had confided themselves to our care. 

These trifling matters imbittered the relations 
existing between us, and Admiral Jurien saw that 
the hostile feelings with which, since the interven- 
tion of foreign powers, Mexico had regarded us, 
were assuming ugly proportions, being greatly fo- 
mented by the foiled ambition of Juares, president 
of Congress. 

Seeing himself dangerously menaced in the 
revolutionary gulf out of which he had been pre- 
tending to deliver the country, Juares sought to 
arouse public opinion against the Europeans in the 
name of patriotic independence. 

Admiral Jurien, foreseeing the entanglements 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 245 

and perils to which he would be exposed by con- 
tinuing to act alone after the other powers had 
judged it prudent to retire, insisted in his dis- 
patches upon the necessity of an immediate evacua- 
tion. His advice did not prevail. Thereupon, 
without resigning his command, the admiral re- 
quested permission to return to France in order 
to explain his conduct and views to the Em- 
peror. This was granted him, and he was ac- 
corded a hearing immediately upon his arrival in 
Paris. 

In order that the conversation might be more 
prolonged he was invited to dine informally at the 
Tuileries. The general impression at court was 
that the Emperor regarded him somewhat unfavor- 
ably, owing to his opposing views concerning the 
Mexican question. Therefore, upon his arrival, 
every face took on its coldest and least cordial ex- 
pression ; but, when the Emperor appeared and his 
glance fell upon the admiral, he hastened forward 
with outstretched hands, welcomed him in the 
warmest manner, and at once engaged him in the 
most friendly and familiar conversation. 

When this came to an end, all those who had 
shortly before turned a cold shoulder on the admi- 
ral pressed eagerly forward and showered him with 



246 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

cordial congratulations upon the remarkable maimer 
in which he had conducted his mission. 

When the sun bursts through the clouds and 
illumines the hitherto obscure horizon, it produces 
this same magic result. This was one of the rarest 
instances of sycophancy that I ever observed at 
court. The effect of the sovereign's example was 
so immediate and thorough that I have always pre- 
served a pleasant recollection of it. 

The increasing complications connected with the 
Mexican enterprise caused his Majesty the gravest 
anxiety. The French hate to confess themselves 
in the wrong, and it seems to be the universal 
opinion that, where the honor of the flag is en- 
gaged, it is better to suffer a defeat than to 
frankly admit a mistake. "Would to God that the 
Emperor had renounced this ill-fated expedition 
then! 

Admiral Jurien de la Graviere did not return 
to Mexico, but, instead, was appointed aide-de-camp 
to the Emperor, who favored him with marked 
tokens of esteem and affection. His open, upright 
character, wide cultivation, agreeable qualities, and 
charming manners, at once disposed every one to 
like and sympathize with him; and the Empress 
soon learned to look upon him as a friend with 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 247 

whom she might converse freely and share her in- 
nermost thoughts. 

When the Emperor was about to depart on the 
campaign of 1870, he requested the admiral to re- 
main with the Empress. Unhappily the admiral 
was denied the sad privilege of accompanying her 
Majesty when she left the Tuileries never to return. 

It happened in this way : the palace, since early 
morning, had been filled with all sorts of persons ; 
every one had entered at his own pleasure to report 
himself, and to place himself at the Empress's 
orders, and more than a hundred persons were gath- 
ered there when the time for departure came. 
Among them were many women, all of whom were 
desirous of being chosen to accompany her Majesty. 

But she absolutely refused to permit any of the 
French people about her to expose themselves for 
her ; and thus it was that she declined, under any 
consideration, to allow Admiral Jurien to follow her. 
She confided herself to the care of the Austrian and 
Italian ambassadors, knowing that their positions 
would entitle them to respect, and took no one with 
her but Mme. Lebreton Bourbaki, her reader, whose 
age and condition rendered her independent. 

After the departure of the admiral from Mexico, 
the enterprise assumed a new character. General 



2 ±8 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

Forey was named commander-in-chief, having un- 
der his command an important corps of the army. 
The campaign was vigorously conducted, and our 
soldiers gained for themselves fresh and brilliant 
laurels. 

The victories won by our army, the prestige of 
France, and the consideration which the name of 
Napoleon III. had acquired throughout the whole 
world drew a vast number of the Mexican partisans 
of law and order about the French standard. These 
people were weary of the scandalous exactions and 
revolutionary difficulties that had crippled the coun- 
try's energies for many years. The idea of a polit- 
ical transformation attracted a considerable party, 
and Juares, who had fomented and sustained the 
broil with us, beaten at all points, supported only 
by a few guerrillas and a handful of adherents — 
fanatics on the subject of Mexican independence — 
was at last obliged to yield his submission ; where- 
upon the entire country arose and requested the 
Emperor to interfere in the internal arrangements, 
and endeavor to establish a secure order of affairs in 
their richly endowed country, which had so long 
been the unhappy victim of anarchy and disorder. 

There were dreams of creating a monarchical 
government capable of rivaling the power of the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 249 

United States in the New World. The sympathetic 
influence of the Austrian ambassador was now 
brought to bear in the matter. 

Since the war in Italy, political ideas had be- 
come modified. Attracted by the loud report of 
arms which was heard from Prussia on the occasion 
of the annexation of the duchies, the Emperor 
seemed to incline toward an Austrian alliance. The 
Archduke Maximilian was proposed as a candidate 
for the Mexican throne, and as the selection was 
agreeable to the various powers, a Mexican deputa- 
tion was sent to Miramar in 1863, to offer to the 
brother of the Emperor of Austria the imperial 
crown of Mexico. 

The Archduke Maximilian, born the 6th of 
July 1832, Grand-admiral and Commander of the 
Imperial Navy of Austria, exercised at the time of 
the war in Italy the command in Lombardy. He 
had married, the 27th of July, 1859, Princess Car- 
lotta, youngest daughter of the King of Belgium 
and Princesse Louise d' Orleans. 

The young princess, being possessed of an en- 
ergetic and adventurous disposition in addition to a 
cultivated and superior mind, received with enthu- 
siasm the prospect of a new destiny for her husband, 
whose position at the imperial court of Austria 



250 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

had of necessity been a second-rate and compara- 
tively obscure one. She saw him at once the 
founder of a great empire and the instrument by 
which one of the richest countries of the world 
might be acquired to civilization. 

The Archduke Maximilian was a man of chival- 
rous character and generous, upright mind. He 
was prompted to accept the throne offered him by 
the purest motives, and at once busied himself in 
negotiating to secure the support of the other Euro- 
pean sovereigns and in forming the bases of future 
alliances which should be of service in creating a 
new state. 

The assent of Austria was assured to him. Prin- 
cesse Carlotta, his wife, was the favorite daughter of 
old King Leopold, who was so long the arbitrator 
between the various sovereigns. The support of 
France was already gained. 

Maximilian and the Empress Carlotta paid a 
visit to the court at the Tuileries. Young, attract- 
ive, and full of the grandeur of the task they 
had undertaken, they pleased every one who saw 
them. 

The Emperor agreed to leave in Mexico for 
three years a garrison of twenty-five thousand men, 
who should gradually return to France as the Mexi- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 251 

can army became organized. The country was to 
be charged with a war indemnity of sixty million 
francs, plus twenty-five millions per year, until the 
whole extent of the loan of two hundred and sev- 
enty million should be repaid. The principal banks 
of Europe opened their exchequers and, guaranteed 
by the French Government, concluded a loan suffi- 
cient to defray all these great expenses. 

Maximilian assured himself of the co-operation 
of the officers who were detailed to serve under for- 
eign rule in the task of organizing the Mexican 
army, and having subscribed to the principal terms 
of the agreement, he prepared to return to Miramar, 
where the investiture was to take place, pausing at 
Rome on the way for the purpose of regulating dif- 
ferent matters concerning the religious side of the 
question with the sovereign pontiff. 

The 16th of April, on his return to Miramar, 
where he was joined by a deputation of Mexicans of 
high position, the coronation took place. The wit- 
nesses" to the ceremony included General Frossard, 
appointed by the Emperor of France as his repre- 
sentative, as well as the delegates of the other pow- 
ers, and Maximilian thus received the title of Em- 
peror of Mexico. 

Shortly afterward the newly created Emperor 



252 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

and Empress left their native land and set sail on 
the frigate Novara for their new empire, escorted by 
two French frigates. An escort of Belgian, French, 
and Austrian soldiers who accompanied them re- 
ceived the title of " Guard to the Empress Car- 
lotta." 

After an excellent voyage the fleet arrived at 
Yera Cruz on the 27th of July, where the Em- 
peror and Empress received a most flattering and 
enthusiastic welcome, well calculated to encourage 
them in the work they had undertaken. To them 
was offered the crown of the old Aztec kings — 
which had been religiously preserved since the fall 
of the ancient dynasty — as to the prince who, ac- 
cording to an old prophecy, was to come from the 
East to reign over Mexico ; and the Emperor, gath- 
ering about him all those whose aid might be of 
value in his great task, set himself courageously at 
work to lay the foundations of the new state. 

Memory looks sadly back upon this young 
couple bravely leaving home, friends, and family 
for a strange life; trusting unhesitatingly to the 
stability of a new and uncertain empire ; voluntarily 
departing from the tranquil shades of that charming 
retreat on the borders of the Adriatic where, at the 
foot of the Tyrolese mountains, they had delighted 



COURT OF THE TUILEBIES. 253 

in constructing a fairy palace to shelter their happy 
and harmonious union. 

In 1866, the agreement entered into by the Em- 
peror Napoleon to leave a corps of French soldiers 
in Mexico expired, and the troops were recalled. 
Delivered up to his own resources, Maximilian 
now found himself confronted by unexpected diffi- 
culties. 

Immediately upon the withdrawal of the French 
army the hopes of those revolutionists who denied 
Maximilian's right to the throne, by reason of his 
foreign birth, awoke, and the country insufficiently 
organized and torn by the violence of opposing fac- 
tions at a time when its new government had 
scarcely begun to feel familiar with its duties, found 
itself plunged into the midst of a series of disorders 
which threatened to menace the personal safety of 
the Emperor. 

Maximilian considered it a point of honor not to 
abandon the post that he had voluntarily accepted. 
It was said that, foreseeing the inevitable result of 
the impending disaster and desiring to spare the 
Empress the fate that he knew must await her if 
she carried out her wish of remaining and sharing 
his destiny, in order to invent a pretext for induc- 
ing her to leave, he suggested that she should return 
17 



254 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

to Europe and seek to obtain sufficient forces to aid 
him in quelling the revolution and sustaining his 
authority. 

In August, 1866, the Empress Carlotta arrived 
in Paris, and without waiting to take the slightest 
rest, which was so much needed after her rough 
voyage, requested the Emperor to grant her an im- 
mediate interview. 

The court equipages were sent to fetch her from 
her hotel, and, with an escort becoming her sover- 
eign rank, the Empress of Mexico arrived about two 
o'clock at Saint-Cloud. 

The Emperor and Empress received her at the 
foot of the staircase, and it was with the most pro- 
found emotion that these three persons again met, 
under circumstances which presented such a cruel 
contrast to their joyous parting. 

The Emperor, Empress, and Empress Carlotta 
mounted the grand staircase of the palace and, hav- 
ing hurriedly performed the customary ceremonies 
of presentation, proceeded at once to the Empress's 
study where they shut themselves in for a long and 
confidential talk. 

The whole appearance of the Empress of Mexi- 
co, who was then only twenty-six years old, betrayed 
the deepest grief and most harassing anxiety. She 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 255 

was tall, with a fine, elegant figure, a round face, 
beautiful, deepset brown eyes, and most charm- 
ing features. She wore a long black silk dress 
which still showed the creases of packing, testify- 
ing its wearer's impatience of delay, as it had evi- 
dently been hastily drawn from the trunk where it 
had lain during the long voyage and hurriedly 
donned, without undergoing any freshening process. 
A black lace mantle and a very becoming white hat 
which had been purchased ready trimmed that very 
morning at some milliner's emporium, completed 
this simple costume. 

The heat that day was perfectly overpowering, 
and, whether from the effect of the long carriage 
ride from Paris to Saint-Cloud or because of the 
emotions that were agitating her, the Empress's face 
was exceedingly red. 

She was accompanied by two Mexican ladies of 
honor, extremely small, black, and ugly, neither of 
whom could speak French acceptably. While their 
Majesties were engaged in a long and private con- 
versation we endeavored to entertain these two 
strangers, both of whom seemed terribly frightened. 
I succeeded in exchanging a few sentences with one 
of them, and in an effort to shorten the time of 
waiting we offered them some refreshments. 



256 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

The Mexican lady begged me to send for some 
orangeade which, she said, the Empress Carlotta 
was in the habit of taking at this hour of the morn- 
ing. Accordingly I gave an order to one of the 
maitres d' hotel, who happened to be in the room, 
to have the drink prepared and carried to the Em- 
press. 

Disturbed by the interruption at such an impor- 
tant moment, the Empress Eugenie demanded of the 
man why he brought the orangeade thither. He 
replied that it was by my order; thereupon the 
Empress drank some of it and pressed it upon the 
Empress Carlotta, who, after appearing to hesitate 
an instant, accepted it. 

After the Mexican Empress had departed, her 
Majesty asked me what had induced me to send in 
the orangeade, remarking that the Empress Carlotta 
seemed surprised at its appearance, only drinking it 
upon her urgent insistance. I then explained what 
had passed, and the Empress suggested that the lady 
of honor had shown rather too much zeal, and that 
probably the Empress Carlotta had been annoyed 
by so trifling an interruption of such a serious dis- 
cussion. 

For two hours the unfortunate Empress, with all 
the eloquence, boldness, and persuasiveness which 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 257 

great misfortunes have at their command, exposed 
to the Emperor the terrible difficulties and dangers 
surrounding a foreign prince in a country agitated 
by revolutionary disturbances, in the midst of an 
almost savage population, and subject to all the hor- 
rors of treason and stratagem which might be em- 
ployed by ambitious politicians only too familiar 
with violence and excess. 

The complications which had already begun to 
create difficulties in France bound the Emperor's 
hands. Although nothing in the world could have 
been more painful to his kind heart than to abandon 
an ally whom he had been so instrumental in plac- 
ing on a danger-encompassed throne, he was obliged 
to content himself with begging the Empress to 
prevail upon her husband to renounce so desperate 
an enterprise and return to Europe. The Emperor 
exerted his utmost efforts to induce Maximilian to 
accede to this proposal, but the latter, considering 
his honor engaged in the matter and resolved to ful- 
fill his duty to the utmost, was utterly intolerant of 
such a course of action. 

The unhappy Empress, deceived by false hopes, 
could not bring herself to abandon her purpose, and 
declared her intention of making new attempts to 
procure aid from the Emperor of Austria and her 



258 RECOLLECTION'S OF TEE 

father, the King of Belgium. She even spoke 
of going to Rome to endeavor to enlist the assist- 
ance of the Holy Father himself. It was said even 
then that her mind was beginning to weaken. 

She left Saint-Cloud with a despairing face and 
features contracted by her efforts to stifle her bitter 
tears, leaving the Emperor and Empress a prey to 
the saddest reflections. Very shortly after this visit 
she showed signs of unnatural excitement of mind ; 
she gave vent to all sorts of incoherent remarks, 
and, beginning to suffer terribly from headaches and 
fever, indulged in the wildest theories of poisoning, 
saying that she had been a victim of foul play and 
that the glass of orangeade that she had drunk at 
Saint-Cloud had been the fatal instrument of her 
undoing. 

Finally a merciful God entirely deprived her 
of her reason and she was thus spared the horrible 
agony of learning the tragic fate of the Emperor 
Maximilian, that young and noble husband whom 
she adored. 

The news of the distressing malady which had 
overtaken the Empress Carlotta reached Mexico in 
the midst of the most alarming political difficulties, 
and the Emperor, who was himself suffering and 
exhausted by the heat of the climate, was almost 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 259 

tempted to rejoice in a circumstance which abso- 
lutely prevented the Empress's return. 

The conservative party supporting the Emperor 
conjured him not to renounce the throne, as advices 
from Europe counseled his doing ; while the repub- 
lican party, regaining strength after the departure of 
the French troops, endeavored to force the Emperor 
to abdicate and quit the country. General Bazaine 
served throughout the entire Mexican campaign as 
commander of the first division under General 
Forey. After the latter's recall he was appointed 
commander in chief of the French garrison. 

Having become widowed through a series of 
tragic circumstances, he married for a second wife a 
young girl belonging to a Mexican family of good 
standing. This gave rise to the accusation that he 
was trying to create a preponderating influence for 
himself in the country. His attitude toward the 
Emperor Maximilian w T as a most unpleasant one. 
Backed by the prestige attaching to the French 
name, he was charged with an attempt to pose as 
direct representative of the Emperor Napoleon ; 
these charges were well grounded. 

He even set forth claims to precedence, which 
provoked the anger of the Emperor and Empress of 
Mexico, and of which they complained bitterly. 



260 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

For instance, when Marechal and Mine. Bazaine as- 
sisted at mass, they required that the clergy should 
precede them and receive them under the dais ; a 
token of respect paid to sovereigns alone. At the 
time of the evacuation of the French troops, Ba- 
zaine published an order of the day authorizing all 
soldiers who had served in the Mexican army at 
foreign expense to return to France with the out- 
going corps, under penalty of being considered de- 
serters. This caused a terrible commotion among 
the recently formed Mexican army, in which the 
greater part of our own men occupied high rank. 

Considering themselves bound by the engage- 
ments they had made with Maximilian, a certain 
number of them refused to retire from his service, 
and continued to remain under the orders of Mira- 
mon and other officers devoted to Maximilian. 

Nearly a year rolled by filled with the most 
tragic events. 

"A true Hapsburg does not abandon his post in 
time of danger," the Mexican Emperor asserted. 

Surrounded by pitfalls, supported by insufficient 
and miserably equipped troops, Maximilian sustained 
a war against an irregular body of men who exercised 
neither justice nor mercy, until, beaten at all points, 
a final attack was made upon him at Queretaro, 



COURT OF THE TTJILERIES. 261 

whither he had retired with what remained to him 
of his faithful troops. 

Among the generals confined with him there 
was General Lopez, whom the Emperor honored 
with his confidence. The name of this man should 
be held up to public contempt and loathing, as are 
those of the most dastardly criminals and traitors. 
On the 15th of May, 1867, he delivered the place 
up to the enemy, and the Emperor fell, defense- 
less, into the hands of Juares, that ambitious bar- 
barian, whom the arrival of Maximilian in Mexico 
had temporarily reduced to powerlessness. 

A mock trial was instituted, in which the Em- 
peror was accused of high treason in having endeav- 
ored to introduce foreign rule into Mexico. But 
his death had already been decided upon by these 
savages as an example to European powers not to 
meddle with Mexican affairs. 

Overwhelmed with calamities, exhausted by ill- 
ness, and delivered without hope of mercy or succor 
to a band of ferocious adventurers, the Emperor 
sustained this iniquitous proceeding and the death- 
sentence which followed with a greatness of soul 
and firmness of spirit that touched the hearts of 
even his butchers. Entirely forgetful of self, he 
expressed the most sincere regret for those of his 



262 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

friends who had been compromised in his cause, 
lamenting the sorrows which threatened the beauti- 
ful land which he had regarded as an adopted coun- 
try, and to which he hoped that his death might at 
least assure peace and safety. 

On the morning of the 19th of June, 1867, after 
having heard mass and received the sacraments, 
the Emperor Maximilian marched to his death with 
a calm brow and loyal spirit, feeling only the most 
generous and unselfish good-will toward the people 
to whom he had hoped to bring order and pros- 
perity, and in whose midst he was about to so mis- 
erably sacrifice a pure and beautiful life. 

Of his own accord he placed himself in the 
midst of the escort who were to conduct him to his 
death, and took leave of the friends who still clung 
to him with affectionate serenity. 

" Death is far easier than one imagines," he said 
to them. " I am ready." 

Arrived at the place of execution, he distributed 
the little gold that he still possessed among the men 
who were to shoot him. 

" Fire bravely," he said. li May mine be the 
last blood shed for this country ! " 

These were his last words. He died nobly as 
became a prince, Christian, and soldier. The news of 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 263 

this horrible assassination reached Paris on the very 
morning of the distribution of medals for the Grand 
Exposition of 1867. The Emperor and Empress 
heard of it with the most bitter regret and sorrow. 

A few days before the murder of Maximilian a 
report reached Mexico, and was communicated to 
the Emperor, to the effect that the Empress Carlotta 
was dead. He found a sad consolation in the tidings. 

" God be praised ! " he exclaimed. " At least 
she will never know of the atrocities which have 
taken place here." 

The Emperor's body was embalmed through the 
care of his friends and sent to Europe on board the 
frigate Novara, the same vessel w T hich four years 
before had conducted him to that empire whose 
possession had been such a fatal gift. Maximilian 
was thirty -five years old at the time of his 
death. 

The Empress Carlotta lives in Belgium, where 
for many years she remained sad but calm, wearing, 
unconsciously, her widow's weeds and wandering 
silently about in the solitude of Laeken, where her 
infancy had been spent and where she had been 
placed through the solicitude of her sister-in-law, 
Queen Henrietta, who watches over her with the 
most tender devotion. 



264: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

They say that now her once lovely spirit has be- 
come quite darkened, and that naught remains of 
that once happy and beloved wife, of that noble 
and brave young Empress, but a faint shadow, un- 
appreciative of the life which is slowly fading 
from her. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 265 



X. 



The empire gave an impetus both powerful 
and intelligent to philanthropic and humanitarian 
interests. The good that was done the working 
classes, thanks to a far-sighted initiative, is incal- 
culable. 

The infant asylums and schools were increased 
in number. The Empress assumed the major share 
in the organization of these benevolent undertak- 
ings, evincing the most unremitting solicitude. The 
condition of the weak and sick was for her the 
object of constant care. It was her custom to visit 
the beneficent and hospitable institutions that she 
might personally inspect all details, with a view to 
applying modifications, devising new means, and 
creatine: fresh resources for the benefit of the labor- 
ing and indigent classes. 

Frequently of a morning the Empress wanted to 
go out alone with me to visit one or more of these 
establishments, either in the hospitals or prisons. 



266 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

No advance preparations would be made since her 
Majesty insisted upon the strictest incognito, and 
would never permit her calls to be announced, it 
being her wish to secure an actual estimate of affairs 
and conditions. 

Early in the morning I was accustomed to be in- 
formed that the Empress would go out, in order 
that I might be in readiness to accompany her. 
Generally we set out about nine o'clock. Her Ma- 
jesty would take a large, dark-colored landau lined 
with gray cloth, which she called her wall-colored 
carriage. A griffin painted upon either door re- 
placed the imperial escutcheon ; the coachman and 
groom wore a black English livery without cockade, 
and thus we were accustomed to go into the poorest 
quarters, as do the charitable ladies who are associ- 
ated with the nuns in caring for and consoling the 
sick in their own lodgings. 

The Maison Eugene-Napoleon, founded with the 
price of the six-hundred-thousand-franc necklace 
offered the Empress upon her marriage by the city 
of Paris, the first charitable endowment of her Ma- 
jesty, still exists, thanks to the indefatigable devo- 
tion of the holy women who direct it. "With a 
genius for charity they have succeeded in maintain- 
ing their three hundred orphans ; several genera- 



COURT OF TEE TUILEEIES. 267 

tions of children have already grown to woman- 
hood, and yet in eighteen years every detail remains 
as it was. 

The huge buildings, erected for all time with a 
truly royal munificence, ever shelter that vast fam- 
ily gathered about the daughters of Saint Yincent 
de Paul, Sisters of Charity, to whom the Empress 
had confided the direction of her asylum. They 
have succeeded in realizing the miracle of having 
made good the sum which the Empress raised upon 
her private exchequer. 

The children's work has its place in the economy 
of the institution. Paying boarders are now re- 
ceived, and at the moderate compensation of thirty 
francs per month children can there secure a com- 
fortable home and an education fitting them to earn 
a livelihood in the future. 

With admirable constancy, with that sublime 
solicitude which is one of the most touching evi- 
dences of charity, the mother superior herself, who 
in concert with the Empress had founded the 
orphan asylum and who was a woman of rare intel- 
ligence, succeeded in obtaining from various sources 
a concurrence which has secured the maintenance of 
the house. 

In 1873 failure and ruin threatened the estab- 



268 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

lishment. The Empress was no longer able to com- 
mand the considerable sums of money which she 
formerly dispensed, the credit was exhausted, the 
Maison Eugenie-Napoleon was overwhelmed with 
debts to the amount of three hundred thousand 
francs. 

From time to time attempts were made to or- 
ganize a lottery ; the Empress sent bracelets and 
jewels ; one year she contributed the baptismal robe 
of the Prince Imperial, but the results were insuffi- 
cient — and yet these maternal angels were loath to 
abandon their children. A struggle to the death 
ensued; but when, a few years later, the mother 
superior upon her death-bed gathered about her the 
administrative committee, composed of generous- 
hearted men who had assisted her in her task, wish- 
ing to settle her accounts, as she expressed herself, 
before setting out upon a long journey, all the debts 
were paid. 

"And I have two hundred and seventy-five 
francs in the treasury," she added with sublime 
pride. 

Everything remains in the same order to-day as 
formerly. The maintenance of an exquisite cleanli- 
ness throughout the immense abode lends that ap- 
pearance of comfort and well-being with which the 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 269 

Empress insisted upon surrounding her little pro- 
tegees. 

With their sublime serenity the nuns show here 
and there some delapidation of painting in the long 
galleries and in the vast corridors. A few years 
since the municipal council withdrew the subsidy of 
three thousand francs which had been granted them 
after the war for the support of the establishment, 
but the children are ever nurtured and cared for 
with the same spirit of solicitude. Actuated by a 
sentiment of fraternity and good-fellowship which 
does them credit, the senior members, such as have 
made a place for themselves in the world, many of 
whom have prospered, receive their younger com- 
rades upon their graduation from the home, for the 
purpose of aiding and directing their course of life ; 
and one and all are free to return to the blessed 
roof which sheltered them in their weakness, and 
beneath which they ceased to be orphans. Thither 
they lead their children as into the bosom of their 
family, and thither they ever find their way when 
in search of affection and counsel. 

In the great hall set apart for reunions on fete 
days two long silken veils conceal full-length por- 
traits of the Emperor and Empress in the radiance 

of their grandeur and beauty, as if, it would appear, 
18 



270 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

veiled from the curiosity of the vulgar eye. Upon 
the front of the chapel are graven these words, in- 
spired by a pious thought : 

" In accordance with the invocation of the most 
holy Virgin and of Sainte-Eugenie this house was 
founded to the honor of religion and labor." 

At the back of the altar in the cupola is still to 
be seen the fresco representing the Empress kneel- 
ing in her nuptial robes, surrounded by the Sisters 
of Saint Yincent de Paul, offering her necklace to 
the little orphans. In May, 1871, during the Com- 
mune, this painting was partially shrouded by the 
shrubbery which ornamented the altar for the cele- 
bration of the month of Mary. Thus it chanced 
that it escaped the devastators. 

All the events of the Empress's life are signal- 
ized by some benevolent undertaking. In 1853, 
during a sojourn of three weeks in Dieppe, in ad- 
dition to alms distributed among the schools and 
the poor, she gave a sum of fifty thousand francs 
to the Sisters of Providence, whom she took nnder 
her patronage. Another sum was granted for the 
creation of a society in aid of aged and infirm sail- 
ors, as well as of families having lost some member 
or members at sea. 

Notre-Dame des Sept Douleurs, the Asile Ma- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 271 

thilde, founded in 1853, under the presidency of 
Princesse Mathilde, was destined as an incurable 
hospital for young women of the diocese of Paris. 
Once admitted, they were free to remain there 
even unto the end. The Hospital Sainte-Eugenie, 
founded on the lGth of March, 1854, was destined 
for children. It contained four hundred and fi.ve 
beds ; here little invalid girls found asylum, while 
the boys were cared for at the Hospital of the In- 
fant Jesus, which comprised six hundred and ninety- 
eight beds. 

The municipal council of Paris undertook to or- 
ganize a system of domiciliary aid for laborers out 
of work and for families in needy circumstances not 
entered at the bureaus of benevolence. On the 
16th of February, 1854, the Emperor and Empress 
sent a sum of six hundred thousand francs out of 
their privy purse in support of this endowment. 

On the 15th of September, 1856, a few months 
after the birth of the Prince Imperial, the Orphan 
Asylum of the Prince Imperial became by decree 
an institution of public utility. The consideration 
which actuated the creation of this establishment 
was that of giving the benefits of home-life to or- 
phan children, and of placing them in the house- 
holds of honest workmen, where they were received 



272 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

for a consideration. A subscription, opened at the 
time of the Prince Imperial's birth, furnished the 
first funds. To this the Emperor added an anneal 
allowance from his private purse in the name of his 
son. Furthermore, certain gifts and legacies were 
consecrated to the same end. 

Not only were charitable undertakings increased, 
but new ones created, the effects of which have ren- 
dered immense service to the indigent classes. 

Through visiting the sick in the hospitals the 
Empress was struck at seeing how weak and debili- 
tated were the majority upon being dismissed ; how 
unfitted for work and the exigencies of earning a 
livelihood. It was to meet this want that the Im- 
perial Asylum at Yincennes was founded with a ca- 
pacity for the reception of four hundred and sixty 
convalescents. The town gave ten thousand metres 
of land, the Emperor two million francs from his 
private purse, and the asylum was inaugurated in 
1857. From that period until 1866 the asylum 
received fifty-seven thousand, eight hundred and 
forty-four convalescents. A similar asylum for 
women was opened at Yesinet. During the same 
period of time this establishment received twenty- 
seven thousand working women upon their dismis- 
sal from the hospitals. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 273 

A veritable genius for good work, the Empress 
thought to institute lectures to occupy and amuse 
the convalescents during the tedious hours of weak- 
ness and inaction that succeed illness. Appealing 
to the concourse of distinguished men, prelates, sa- 
vants, authors, and economists, the Empress decided 
that three times each week lectures should be de- 
livered in the Asile Imperial de Yincennes upon 
questions of practical and moral science. She even 
allowed from her private purse a considerable sum 
to defray the expenses incident upon this creation. 
Monseigneur Darboy, who was inscribed among the 
number of professors charged with these familiar 
talks, himself inaugurated the lectures at the Asile 
Imperial de Yincennes surrounded by devoted men 
who had given themselves to the work. 

Upon his arrival, the Archbishop of Paris was 
received with enthusiastic cries of " Long live mon- 
seigneur ! " " Long live the Empress ! " In his ad- 
dress of welcome to the prelate, M. de Bosredon, 
secretary in chief to the Minister of the Interior, 
thus explained the purpose of the lectures : 

" Already, gentlemen," he remarked, " all that 
can contribute to the restoration of your strength, 
spent with labor and suffering, has been been em- 
ployed here ; but one thing still is lacking, and this 



274 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

her Majesty, the Empress, has graciously supplied ; 
she has not only desired to make this asylum of ad- 
vantage to the body, but to the mind and soul as well. 

" These lectures will be given you by eminent 
men who have responded to the appeal of her 
Majesty. Some will recall those great thoughts of 
religion and morality which occasionally slumber in 
the heart of man, but which, when that heart is 
touched by suffering and grief, become an inestima- 
ble, a celestial consolation. 

" Others will expose the economic laws of labor 
and wages, some knowledge of which is necessary 
for you the better to understand and serve your 
own interests. Others will read you leading pas- 
sages from admired authors whom French audiences 
ever applaud, for the reason that in France the 
public, though it may be lacking in literary culture, 
is never devoid of a natural good taste. Finally, oth- 
ers will describe the marvels of science and the no 
less astonishing discoveries of industry. None of 
you will henceforth leave the asylum without hav- 
ing received some curious facts, some good counsel, 
or some useful truths that he will communicate to 
his children or comrades, thus extending the noble 
love of study and instruction of which he has been 
made the possessor." 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 275 

Having praised the wish of the Emperor, in 
opening the home for convalescents, to bridge the 
abyss existing between the bed of the suffering 
workman and his work-shop, the venerable Arch- 
bishop of Paris rendered thanks in generous terms 
to the Empress who had furthered and completed 
the work in establishing the lectures. Referring to 
the words of M. de Bosredon, Monseigneur Darboy 
remarked : 

u It is not intended to give you the details and 
developments of science, viewed in its most pro- 
found and technical purposes, but a relative knowl- 
edge which may be useful to your professions. By 
these means you will be able to perfect your trade, 
your art, or your industry, for a man manages his 
affairs and derives advantage hence according as he 
is master of his calling. Every profession, ennobled 
and perfected, contributes to the general progress 
and to the amelioration of all that which pertains 
to life and well-being. Everything is of import in 
this world ; even the humblest trade, the most ob- 
scure industry, bears some relation to the arts, the 
sciences, and those superior labors of human genius 
which honor and aggrandize the fatherland. 

" The whole world is but one grand concert in 
which each one strikes his note, plays his part, and 



276 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

in which each one of as should be proud to contrib- 
ute to the general harmony ; and that without dis- 
paraging and hating those who labor under other 
conditions and with different aptitudes. This mag- 
nificent union of ability and strength is my dream 
for the repose, the prosperity, and the grandeur of 
my country, and I am stirred by the thought of all 
that France might be if only her children would 
draw upon their resources and place the result to 
the national credit ! " 

Such were the evangelic words of this prelate 
who was an ardent patriot, and who later fell an ex- 
piatory victim of crimes committed in the fatal 
hour of the nation's existence. 

The Empress entertained a vast respect for the 
human soul ; she felt that all conditions of men 
can be reached when the heart and brain are ap- 
pealed to. 

In 1857 an establishment was founded at Berck- 
sur-Mer for the treatment of scrofulous children. 
Convalescent homes for children were founded at 
Falaise (1859) and at Epinay (1861), the latter be- 
ing placed under the patronage of the venerable 
Abbe Deguerry, cure of La Madeleine, and of Dr. 
Oonneau, director of the Emperor's private chari- 
ties. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 277 

These houses received children discharged from 
the hospitals of the Enfant-Jesus and Sainte-Eugenie. 
Thus they enjoyed fresh air and excellent hygienic 
conditions until completely restored to health. 

But it was not alone the Parisian population 
who became the object of the imperial solicitude. 
In all the great centers, especially where there was 
much good to be done, the benevolence of the sov- 
ereigns was exercised with unstinted liberality. 

On the 9th of July, 1866, the Empress addressed 
the following letter to M. Henri Chevreau, presid- 
ing prefect of Lyons : 

" Monsieur le Secateur : I have followed with 
the keenest interest all the measures undertaken by 
the commission of the hospitals of Lyons in aid of 
a suffering populace ; the creation of the Croix- 
Kousse lying-in hospital, the installation of a greater 
number of beds in the Charity Hospital, and finally 
the new system of interment, in which I am particu- 
larly interested, are alike proofs of the intelligent 
and devoted zeal which the commission has brought 
to the accomplishment of its noble task. I am also 
aware that, thanks to its activity, other ameliora- 
tions are in progress of execution, but it seems to 
me that still another abyss remains to be bridged. 



278 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

The establishment at Yincennes of a home for con- 
valescents decreed by the Emperor in 1853, has 
demonstrated the necessity of not permitting pa- 
tients to pass directly from the hospital to the 
work-shop. 

" I desire, Monsieur le Senateur, to impress the 
importance of this consideration upon Lyons, and to 
that end I give, without restrictions, to the hospitals 
of your city, the Chateau of Longchene with all its 
dependencies that it may become an asylum for 
convalescents. 

" The interests of the poor are too well placed in 
the hands of the administration and of the commis- 
sion of hospitals for me to appeal to their zeal to the 
end that this asylum shall be opened with as brief a 
delay as possible. I thank you also for the prompt- 
ness which you have evinced in this respect. 

"Believe me, Monsieur le Senateur, in all in- 
terest, Eugenie. 

" Tuileries, July 9, 1866." 

The war of secession in America had its conse- 
quences in France and led to a most painful indus- 
trial crisis, particularly in the great manufacturing 
centers. 

On the 4th of March, 1862, the Emperor sent 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 279 

the sum of two hundred and fifty thousand francs 
from his private exchequer to the prefects of the 
Rhone, Loire, Seine Inferieure, and Nord in aid of 
laborers out of employment. 

In Paris and Bordeaux, in September, 1859, the 
instruction of deaf mutes received a fresh impiilse ; 
the central association for the education of deaf 
mutes was placed under the patronage of the 
Prince Imperial, and everywhere, side by side with 
the expenses of the state, appeared the initiative, 
the generous gifts of the sovereigns. A decree of 
1862 placed the infant homes and schools under 
the protection of the Empress, while everywhere 
they were increased in number. 

During the war in Italy the Empress caused a 
subscription to be opened in aid of the widows and 
orphans of our soldiery. The subscription produced 
5,180,000 francs. A committee was constituted for 
the distribution of pensions and gifts, and operated 
under the presidency of the Empress. 

In 1858 the military hospital at Yincennes was 
inaugurated. The Empress was actively associated 
in the creation of the life-saving society, which was 
recognized as an establishment of public utility by 
the decree of November IT, 1865. 

The Empress had accepted the patronage of this 



280 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

society and sent the first three life-boats with their 
accessories, which represented a sum of thirty thou- 
sand francs. Since that epoch the life-saving stations 
have been multiplied. "When the fogs envelop the 
coast, when the tempest is let loose, the vessels go 
astray, the iishing-smaeks lose sight of the haven of 
refuge; then the sea hurls them upon the rocks, 
submerges, crushes them until the strand is strewed 
with corpses and debris. 

Thanks to the energy, to the devotion of the 
coast-guards, who formerly remained powerless in 
the majority of cases, when a ship in distress is now 
signaled the life-boats are manned, and each year 
hundreds of sailors and passengers, doomed to perish 
but for their timely succor, are snatched from the 
jaws of death. 

In another direction, and one perhaps still higher 
in aim, the work being the noblest of all charities, 
the Empress devoted much time to the amelioration 
of the condition of the female working classes. 

The Society of the Prince Imperial, instituted 
in 1862, rendered incalculable service. It was 
started by means of endowments fixed at one hun- 
dred francs or of annual subscriptions of ten francs. 
Its object was to make loans to workmen and small 
manufacturers to assist them in the purchase of in- 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 281 

struments, tools, and necessary materials. The 
loans were not to exceed five hundred francs ; the 
moral standing of the borrowers was investigated, 
and the sums required were furnished at the low 
rate of interest of one half of one per cent. Only 
in rare cases were the payments unpunctual. 

About this time the use of sewing-machines be- 
came general. Thanks to this assistance, a vast 
number of women were enabled to secure this 
means of support. The funds of the work were en- 
tered as loans and administered by a committee of 
twenty members, under the presidency of the Em- 
press, who personally signed several thousand or- 
ders decorated with her portrait, which she sent in 
acknowledgement to the subscribers. The Society 
of the Prince Imperial undertook to establish com- 
mittees in all sufficiently important localities. 

In August, 1866, during the sojourn of the court 
at Saint- Cloud, a fund was started for the benefit of 
invalid workmen which was the object of many 
combinations and much discussion. 

A considerable capital was raised by a tax of 
one per cent upon all public works executed at the 
expense of the state, of the departments and par- 
ishes, while a light assessment placed at the dis- 
position of the adherents eight hundred pensions 



282 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

of three hundred francs payable to disabled work- 
men or their widows. 

In January, 1867, eight kitchens, placed under 
the patronage of the Prince Imperial, distributed 
during the space of a few months 1,244,736 meals at 
five centimes each. They were opened in the most 
populous quarters of the city — Rue des Gravilliers, 
des Anglaises, Vendamne, de la Rosiere, Lacroix, 
Polonceau, Veron, and des Amandiers. 

On the 22d of Feburary, 1866, the Empress 
paid Charenton a visit. One of the inmates of the 
asylum, apparently sane, approached her, and in the 
most rational, even eloquent terms, besought her to 
intercede with the administration to the end that 
justice might be done him and his liberty restored. 

" I am deeply interested in scientific work," he 
informed the Empress. " My family were alarmed 
lest I should waste my fortune in the researches I 
make in behalf of the latest applications of science, 
and it was through their odious rapacity that they 
have shut me up here. Permit me, madame, to 
present some of my works ; be good enough to 
have them examined. One alone will satisfy you 
whether a disordered brain is able to carry scientific 
calculations to such an extent." 

His language was clear and intelligent, his man- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 283 

ners perfect. Keenly interested and somewhat dis- 
trustful of the reputation the doctors of the insane 
bear, being all too prone to discover madness in 
every mind, the Empress resolved to do all in her 
power to relieve the lot of the unfortunate man. 
She commanded M. Duruy, at that time Minister of 
Public Instructions, to examine these documents. 
They were intrusted to specialists, and shortly 
afterward M. Duruy made his report, declaring 
them to be the product of a remarkably endowed 
mind. 

The Empress determined to return to Charen- 
ton for the purpose of seeing her protege again and 
of personally giving him an account of the examina- 
tion of his w r ork while action was being taken in re- 
gard to his family and the faculty. The man 
manifested the liveliest delight at this new visit of 
the Empress. 

" Ah, madame," he exclaimed, " you alone are 
able to save me ! My family are my worst enemies. 
Just see ! they have placed the Pantheon on the end 
of my nose to prevent my making my escape from 
here ! " 

Alas ! this mind in all respects so superior was 
actually unhinged upon certain questions, though 
apparently so logical. 



284: RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

The Empress was indefatigable in her superin- 
tendence of charitable institutions. Yery fre- 
quently she would hear of some misfortune or 
calamity which claimed her attention ; thereupon 
she would ascertain the details, and, having possessed 
herself of them, she would go among the poorest 
people bearing aid and encouragement. The suffer- 
ers rarely guessed the quality of the person whom 
they received, and could only have recognized her 
by the generosity of her offerings. The Empress 
always went forth with a full purse and returned 
with it empty. Thus great sums of money were, 
little by little, dispensed from that tiny envelope. 

Mine. Lebaudy, whose benevolence is well 
known, having gone to visit a poor invalid to whom 
she frequently carried some little comforts, chanced 
to pass one clay upon the staircase two ladies whose 
appearance struck her, but who passed her rapidly, 
as if desirous of concealing their identity ; however, 
there was no mistaking the pair, one of whom she 
recognized as the Empress. Upon reaching her 
protegee's chamber, she found her fairly radiant. 
The woman informed her that two unknown ladies 
had called to see her, and had left her a generous 
memento of their visit. One of them had even ob- 
served that her bed was out of order and badly 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 285 

made, and with her own hands had adjusted the 
covers and set the room to rights. From the de- 
scription given, Mine. Lebaudy at once recognized 
the fact that it was indeed the Empress whom she 
had met. She informed the poor woman, who al- 
most fainted with emotion and delight. Persons 
who have had the honor of living familiarly with 
the Empress will all bear witness to similar acts 
upon her part. 

It was under just such circumstances that her 
Majesty dreaded lest she might betray herself and 
be recognized. She was loath to be accused of 
affectation in paying such visits. 

" It would be easy enough," she once said to me, 
" to send what I carry, but I try to do myself a lit- 
tle good at the same time, for when I find myself 
surrounded by misery and suffering I am better 
able to bear my own cares and anxieties." 

Moreover, it required some courage to enter the 

houses of distant quarters whither we were in the 

habit of going. One day the Empress went into 

the neighborhood of Belleville to visit a woman 

who had been confined with her twelfth child. 

The street was narrow and' crooked, and leaving her 

carriage at some distance the Empress set out on 

foot. The poor woman lived in a tenement, a 
19 



286 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

veritable hive, where at that early hour the women, 
coming and going, were busy attending to the cares 
of their households. 

In a corner of the court, which was large, the 
Empress espied a child of some three or four years of 
age knocked down by a ragamuffin much stronger, 
who had snatched from his hands a cake which some 
one had given him. 

The Empress hurried to the spot, released the 
little fellow, and, recovering the cake from the 
hands of his adversary, put the latter to shame and 
gave the younger lad a louis to buy more ; but the 
larger boy, finding that he had lost the cake, set up 
a frightful howl, whereupon his mother, believing 
that her child was being ill-treated, rushed out and 
began to insult the " rigged-up women " and raise a 
riot among the other women of the quarter who, 
not knowing what was to pay, joined the chorus. 
As these had no end of Billingsgate at their tongues' 
ends, the Empress was obliged to regain her car- 
riage without loss of time, leaving her charitable 
work undone. 

Such incidents, however, were rare, and though 
she often passed unrecognized, her visits were re- 
ceived with deep gratitude and much deference. 

The Empress gave great assistance to the work 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 287 

of maternal charity founded by Marie- Antoinette, a 
work which aims at securing domicile for pregnant 
women. Through its means they receive medical 
care, a certain amount of money, clothing for the 
child, and linen. The Empress was president of the 
organization. 

In 1865, during the Emperor's journey to Al- 
giers, the powers of regency were vested in the 
Empress. During this time she specially interested 
herself in youthful prisoners. But in an adminis- 
tration so well organized as the French administra- 
tion routine possesses a power which carries all be- 
fore it. Neither the changes wrought by time, nor 
the modifications which transpire in habits and cus- 
toms prevail against it. From the moment that any 
affair comes under the direction of the administra- 
tion no hope can be entertained of introducing any 
change ; it is declared perfect, and one runs the risk 
of becoming an enemy to the state if one seeks to 
ameliorate it. The Empress herself discovered this 
fact. 

One day her Majesty went to the Petite Eo- 
quette, accompanied by M. Boitelle, at that time 
chief of police, and several other heads of the ad- 
ministration. The cellular system — that is to say, 
the torture of solitary confinement — was the rule of 



288 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

this establishment, destined to receive abandoned, 
rather than absolutely guilty children. 

In order to shun the contagion of evil in pre- 
venting the contact of these young beings, among 
whom precocious perversity is assuredly well de- 
veloped, no other means of enforcing silence and 
maintaining absolute separation had been found for 
the five hundred children, ranging in age from ten 
to eighteen years, all of whom, living side by side, 
knew not the look of each others' faces and had 
never heard the sound of each others' voices. 

In the narrow cells — furnished with a bed, a ta- 
ble, and a bucket — all opening upon the dim cor- 
ridor, each child was seated at solitary labor that 
enforced almost complete immobility. It was there 
they took their meals, there they slept. 

In a vast inner court-yard which no eye could 
penetrate paths of twenty metres in length and 
separated from each other by impregnable walls 
afforded the children an opportunity of stretching 
their benumbed limbs ; here, one by one, like little 
animals in a cage, these poor creatures marched me- 
chanically to and fro with bent head, lowered eye, 
and stupid mien in the lugubrious monotony of 
these open tombs. 

The chapel where mass was said each Sunday 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 289 

was no more a place of consolation ; in all respects 
like a hive, it was surrounded by seats placed one 
above another, and so ingeniously disposed that a 
sort of inclined shutter permitted a glimpse of the 
altar and yet behind the grating before which each 
child sat no glance could stray into the adjoining 
boxes. 

All that was maternal in the heart of the Em- 
press rose in arms, and assembling the unfortunate 
little ones about her she spoke to them, encouraged 
and cheered them, transfigured by the emotion 
which agitated her as she considered that in an 
epoch such as ours so many unfortunate beings, for 
the most part unconscious of their faults, were sub- 
jected to a torture which had been suppressed in 
the majority of prisons. 

Here were children of only eight years ! Some 
beautiful, some wearing a pitiful look. 

" What have you done ? " inquired the Empress 
of one. 

" Slept under the bridges." 

" Where is your mother ? " 

" I haven't any mother." 

" Who took care of you % " 

" Papa's sweetheart." 

" Why did you leave your home ? " 



290 RECOLLECTION'S OF THE 

" Because she beat me." 

" And your father \ " 

" Papa wasn't there." 

More than twenty times this sad recital fell from 
the lips of the children with the hopelessness bred 
of those social plagues, against which there seems to 
be so little remedy that one strives to forget the 
specter in order to exorcise it. Still it exists. 

Older ones, with evil faces and furtive eyes, 
seemed to be fully conscious of their faults ; these 
were already genuine culprits. They essayed long 
stories in an attempt to jumble questions and replies 
unintelligibly. One felt them to be branded for 
crime, while their fury at chastisement sharpening 
their sullied imaginations, they seemed to meditate 
in their solitary abandonment a series of subtle, 
bold strokes. And there they lived alongside the 
others, the innocent ones who were much more nu- 
merous and whose only crime was that they were 
poor, weak, and forgotten. 

Some of these children were there by parental 
instigation. One of them, a handsome boy of four- 
teen years, with a bold air, had surf ered imprison- 
ment for a year. His father was a police officer. 
He had purloined some trifle in passing through the 
street. His father, fancying his official dignity was 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 291 

menaced by the act of his son, had shut him up for 
a whole year ; furious at so terrible a punishment, 
the unhappy boy had sworn to be avenged. 

" I will kill my father," he said, " when I get 
out of here ! " 

Nothing could appease him, and under the most 
severe correction he persisted in his declaration. 
The Empress questioned him. He told her his 
story intelligently. 

" My father had no right for such a little thing 
to torture me to this extent. He is unjust, and I 
will kill him ! " 

Thereupon the Empress, drawing him gently to 
her, talked kindly to him, and so touchingly por- 
trayed the course of duty that the child completely 
overcome, flung himself upon his knees, burst into 
tears, and promised to renounce his dread design. 
Then the Empress promised to have his father 
spoken to and requested to abridge the duration of 
the boy's imprisonment. She was as good as her 
word, and for several years she watched over him, 
having secured him an apprenticeship which he 
filled to his credit. 

It was about this time that M. Emile Ollivier 
first appeared at the Tuileries. He had delivered a 
most important discourse in the Chamber upon 



292 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

trades-unions and the rights of the working classes. 
The Empress desired to converse with him, so he 
was invited to dine at the Tnileries in company with 
several of his colleagues. These gentlemen attached 
much importance to the manner of attire in which 
they should present themselves. Liberal ideas at 
that period permitted no concessions in regard to 
costume, it appears. When it became known that 
M. Emile Ollivier had accepted an invitation to dine 
at the Tuileries, his friends asked themselves with 
much agitation whether or no he would don short 
clothes, which was court dress, and thus far pledge 
himself to tyranny. 

Fortunately, the invitation was informal, and 
these gentlemen were relieved upon being informed 
by a gentleman in waiting that upon ordinary even- 
ings court dress was not worn. Accordingly, at the 
dinner hour they appeared at the Tuileries in the 
usual evening dress, but as they were about to enter 
the palace they paused in dismay at sight of a gen- 
tleman in short clothes alighting from a cab. It 
was too late to retreat, and, reflecting that they had 
been officially authorized to come in long trousers, 
they entered, albeit in some disarray. 

The gracious reception of the Empress at once 
put them at their ease, and they were promptly re- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 293 

assured by noticing that the officers in waiting were 
attired as they were. The gentleman who had so 
alarmed them by alighting from his cab in knee- 
breeches was simply an usher who, finding himself 
belated, had taken a carriage to the palace. 

M. fimile Ollivier was a singularly fascinating 
man. Beneath an exterior devoid of the slightest 
pretension, plain of feature, and cumbered with 
spectacles that concealed his fine, gentle eyes, the 
man of heart and genius was still to be descried. 

The enthusiasm of our race which hails those 
who attain to power through new ideas enveloped 
him upon his entrance into the councils of the Em- 
peror. ]STo one more than he was pursued by the 
public clamor after the denouements of the events 
over which he presided. 

After the visit to the young prisoners which had 
so deeply inpressed the Empress, she established a 
commission during her regency for the purpose of 
reforming the odious system of solitary confinement 
and transferring its victims to agricultural peniten- 
tiaries. M. Emile Ollivier, a partisan of these insti- 
tutions, warmly supported the views of the Empress, 
who presided at the meetings held at the Tuileries. 

During the progress of one of these meetings 
the Empress, who ordinarily maintained silence 



294 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

while she listened to the various members, charging 
a particular one to speak for her, personally espoused 
the cause of the unfortunate children and spoke 
with ardor of her desire to ameliorate their pitiable 
condition. One of the members of the commission, 
divining that such radical changes were likely to 
subvert the administrative economy, replied : 

" All that you say is true, madame, but so many 
difficulties are raised by your suggestions as to place 
it beyond the reach of remedy. The whole affair 
resolves itself into a matter of sentiment." 

" I ask your pardon," responded the Empress, 
gently, " it is a question of humanity and policy." 

The youthful prisoners of La Hoquette were 
finally distributed among the agricultural peniten- 
tiaries. 

It was not without the liveliest anxiety that the 
heads of these establishments watched the new- 
comers — these unhappy wretches whom the law 
had judged stained with every vice — mix them- 
selves among the children already disciplined by 
work, who had willingly accepted the free life of 
the fields and appreciated its advantages; but re- 
sults soon confirmed all that could be hoped from 
this change of treatment. 

The worst and most hardened natures rapidly 



COURT OF THE TTJILEBIES. 295 

improved under the beneficent influence of a busy, 
active existence in the open air of the country. 
One of the prisoners was sixteen years of age when 
he was transferred to Citeaux. He traveled with 
fifty-six of his companions and made himself con- 
spicuous by his old coarseness. 

66 You may try to coax my comrades," he re- 
marked to his keeper, " but you will never be able 
to manage me. At La Roquette I was called ' jail- 
bird,' and ' jail-bird ' I will remain." 

At the end of a year this boy had become so do- 
cile that he was pardoned before the expiration of 
his term. Thanks to the recommendation of the 
chief of the establishment, he became an intelligent 
farm-hand and is now an honest man. 

Every month Dr. Conneau, who daily saw the 
Emperor, distributed in small parts a sum of sixty 
thousand francs, levied upon the imperial privy 
purse, which sum was spent to relieve the unfortu- 
nate beings who appealed to the inexhaustible char- 
ity of the sovereigns. Dr. Conneau died in 1878, 
leaving no fortune whatever to his family. From 
the year 1852 to 1869 the number of charitable in- 
stitutions was raised from 9,331 to 13,278, being an 
increase of 3,942. 

In Paris alone the number of infant asylums 



296 EECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

was raised from 73 to 87; the number of infant 
schools from 1,735 to 3,633 ; that is to say 1,904 
new schools were created with a capacity for 275,000 
more children. The number of societies of mater- 
nal charity was raised, in all parts of France, from 
4A to 1,860. 

Moreover, a great number of hospitals were 
started, among others the new Hotel-Dieu and the 
Hospital Lariboisiere. The majority of the others 
were enlarged, drained, and furnished with new and 
perfected curative appliances. Work was carried 
on in the economical kitchens subsidized by the im- 
perial purse. A corps was organized for the treat- 
ment of the sick at home and in the country, as well 
as a service of dispensaries, baths, and public lavato- 
ries ; and last, but by no means least, that band of 
chaplains, almoners of the last prayers, was formed, 
that supreme offering of Christian piety which re- 
ceives upon the threshold of the cemetery those 
poor creatures who are so unfortunate and deserted 
as to be forced to take the final journey to the 
field of rest unattended and alone. 

The Empress never hesitated to go to Saint- 
Lazare, another social plague-spot, where misery, 
suffering, and vice conspire to render the somber 
house frightful to contemplate. 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 297 

In the infirmary a wretched girl lay at the point 
of death. It was almost impossible to judge whether 
she was still young or whether she had reached the 
limits of extreme old age. Her life had been passed 
in the gutters and hospitals — a complete failure. 
In the hour of deliverance her vile and miserable 
past flitted like a horrible vision before her mind 
distracted with the pangs of dissolution. Haunted 
by the recollection of so much suffering and shame, 
the unhappy creature repulsed the exhortations of 
the chaplain, whom the nuns insisted upon being 
heard. 

" Let me alone ! There is no God ! " she cried. 
" I can not suffer more in hell than I have suffered 
upon earth." 

It was a tragic spectacle to watch one preparing 
for death by cursing life. Athwart her violence and 
the incoherence of her speech one could trace the 
wasted existence, while despair lent a sort of savage 
eloquence to her withered lips. A child had left 
its mark upon her life ; she had lost it while young. 
Its memory returned to her evoking expressions of 
impassioned maternal tenderness. It was the only 
being she had loved, the only being who had cared 
for her, and death had taken it from her. Her 
outbursts of love for it were intermingled with 



298 RECOLLECTIONS OF TEE 

blasphemy and insults to those who surrounded 
her, seeking to comfort her. 

The Empress approached and spoke to her. She 
sympathized with her, and used such gentle, touch- 
ing words that the hardened heart relaxed. 

" What ! are you the Empress \ " she said, " and 
can you, so rich, so beautiful, so happy, interest 
yourself in a wretch like me, and seem touched be- 
cause I suffer \ It must be true, then, that there is 
a good God since you have so kind a heart." 

Thereupon she became calm ; she asked forgive- 
ness of the sisters and of the nurses ; she begged 
one of the nuns to lend her her beads, and, with the 
assistance of the Empress she passed them around 
her throat, holding them against her poor, distorted 
face ; then she asked for the priest and sought con- 
fession. A little later she expired in the consola- 
tion of prayer. The savage despair had yielded to 
divine hope, and the closing hours of that sad life 
were perhaps the sweetest. 

The bearing of consolation to the dying is a 
sacred task ; than it there is no duty more merciful. 
Ordinarily simple, almost playful in conversation, 
the Empress possessed upon such occasions an ex- 
alted, touching eloquence which is the privilege of 
truly great souls. 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 299 

The day of that visit to Saint-Lazare was one 
upon which the Empress received the most touch- 
ing proof of popular gratitude. The report of her 
presence in the prison spread, and a crowd gathered 
to see her. The people divine generosity by intui- 
tion. They comprehended that the visit of the Em- 
press to these poor, despised creatures was an act 
of touching humanity. 

When, on going out, she appeared upon the 
threshold of the prison, a concert of tender bone-, 
dictions met her, and it was through the midst of 
kneeling groups of women who sought to touch 
her hands and garments while they presented their 
children to her that the Empress regained her car- 
riage. It seemed as if they wished to testify their 
highest respect for one who had not hesitated to 
display her clemency toward infamy. 

Her Majesty's benevolence and generosity were 
well known ; while her visits among the cholera 
patients of Paris and Amiens proclaimed the valor 
of her serene soul. 

Toward the end of September, 1865, the court 
was at Biarritz when tidings came that Paris was 
invaded by the cholera, terrible memoirs of which 
had been rife among the Parisian populace since 
the year of its last advent, 1849. It was at once 



300 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

decided to return, and forthwith the court set out 
for Saint-Cloud. 

The epidemic underwent several phases. Its 
first appearance filled all hearts with terror ; then 
the plague seemed to be upon the wane, when, 
toward the middle of October, its revival was the 
cause of a general panic. Every one at liberty to 
leave Paris beat a hasty retreat. The working pop- 
ulation, particularly, fell victims to the scourge ; the 
hospitals were filled to repletion and families were 
decimated. 

On the 21st of October the Emperor came to 
Paris, accompanied by General Peille, his aide-de- 
camp, and one officer of ordnance. 

The Emperor paid a visit of some length to the 
Hotel-Dieu, questioning the patients and the doc- 
tors, and encouraging them with his habitual calm- 
ness and benignity. Upon taking his leave he left 
a sum of fifty thousand francs to be expended for 
the comfort of the afflicted. 

The Empress had not been made acquainted 
with this visit, and upon her husband's return she 
expressed much regret at being deprived of the 
pleasure of accompanying him. 

" I thought you would want to go," said the 
Emperor to her, " but you have too bad a cold 



COURT OF THE TUILERIES. 301 

to go out. That is why I did not let you know 
about it." 

In truth, the Empress was suffering from a most 
severe cold, a sort of influenza, which much debili- 
tated her. 

That evening at dinner and next day there was 
much conversation upon the incidents of the cholera 
and upon the happy moral effect produced by the 
Emperor's visit to the sufferers, and his Majesty 
inquired whether I were afraid of the epidemic. 
At the time I possessed that happy confidence 
of youth which knows no fear of misfortune or 
death. I was no coward, and I told the Emper- 
or so. 

Next morning, October 23d, at nine o'clock, I 
was notified that the Empress had asked for me. I 
went to her with all speed, and was informed that 
her Majesty awaited me in the Emperor's apart- 
ments. Indeed, I found the Empress, already pre- 
pared to go out, talking with the Emperor in his 
study when I entered. 

" The Empress intends to visit the cholera pa- 
tients. I know how attached you are to her," said 
the Emperor to me, with great tenderness, " and I 
am sure you will insist upon accompanying her; 

but she will not take you with her unless you prom- 
20 



302 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE 

ise to remain in the carriage and not enter the 
wards with her." 

I assured the Emperor that such conduct on my 
part would be veritable pusillanimity ; that it would 
be the height of mortification to me not to accom- 
pany the Empress, and that contagion could as eas- 
ily reach me at the doors of the hospitals as though I 
entered. 

" Unless yon give me your formal promise to re- 
main outside, the Empress shall go without you," 
persisted his Majesty. 

I was too tenacious of the honor of being with 
the Empress under the circumstances not to promise 
all that was exacted of me. 

We quitted Saint-Cloud in one of the state car- 
riages with outriders, the Marquis de la Grange, 
equerry to the Empress, and Commandant Charles 
Duperre, officer of ordnance to the Emperor, ac- 
companying her Majesty. 

" The Empress," said the " Moniteur " of Octo- 
ber 23, 1865, " has consecrated the entire day to vis- 
iting the cholera sufferers. Despite a violent cold 
from which she had been suffering for several days, 
her Majesty, forgetful of her own fatigue in her in- 
terest in the suffering and mourning of others, has 
visited the hospitals Beaujon, Lariboisiere, and Saint- 



COURT OF TEE TUILERIES. 303 

Antoine. She has passed through the wards filled 
with the afflicted, has approached the bed of many 
a sufferer, and has questioned and encouraged all 
with the solicitude and devotion of a sister of 
charity." 

After the call at the Hospital Beaujon which was 
prolonged until midday, we went to the Tuileries, 
where a hasty luncheon was partaken of. Immedi- 
ately after the repast the Empress set out for the 
Hospital Lariboisiere, then to the Hospital Saint-An- 
toine. It was at the Hospital Beaujon that the Em- 
press, having drawn near a bed on which lay a dying 
victim, took the sufferer's hand in hers and addressed 
to him a few words of holy consolation. Thinking 
that it was one of the nuns who accosted him, the 
man gathered his expiring strength to kiss the hand 
that held his, as he murmured : 

" I thank you, sister." 

The nun who accompanied the Empress bent 
over him, and remarked, 

" You are mistaken, friend ; it is not I, but our 
good Empress who speaks." 

" Nay, sister," retorted the Empress quickly, " he 
has given me the sweetest of all names." 

Since then these words have been frequently 
quoted. 



304 THE COURT OF THE TUILEBIES. 

At the Hospital Saint- Antoine one of the doctors 
who preceded the Empress mistook the door and 
opened the way into a ward where other patients 
were lying ; these were afflicted with the small-pox. 
Perceiving his mistake, the doctor besought the 
Empress to retire, but she refused, and entered, 
saying : 

" I wish to see these people as well, since they 
are sufferers." 

Only she commanded me not to cross the thresh- 
old, remarking with a smile : 

" I do not wish you to enter ; if you were disfig- 
ured you conld never be married." 

At that very time her Majesty was in the full 
glory of her beauty. Upon coming out of the hos- 
pitals the Empress was almost borne to her carriage 
by the crowd who followed in her wake, who sur- 
rounded her, kissing her hands and loading her with 
blessings. 

When at last we reached Saint- Cloud the Em- 
press experienced the sweet emotion of perceiving 
that her dress had been cut into tatters, which the 
women of the people distributed in morsels and pre- 
served as one preserves some relic. 

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(5) 



NEW AND STANDARD FICTION (continued). 



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(6) 



NEW AND STANDARD FICTION (continued). 



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Misericordia. 

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Newton Forster. 

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CO 



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I No Intentions. 

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(8) 



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(9) 



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Struck Down. 

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(10) 



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(ID 



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